Licorice Words
by LudwigTheViolin
Summary: "Once upon a time, there was an unfortunate boy. He had lost something very precious to him." When his older brother runs away, Emil is devastated and can no longer find a purpose to speak. Then, he meets Leon, a new student from China. As the two grow from acquaintances to friends, the silence becomes too much to bear and Emil learns what words taste like again. Revised: Chapter1
1. Prologue: Licorice Story

**Author's Note: Alright! Let's go! Let's do this! I'm revising this entire thing! Because I feel like my writing is incompetent, I'm revising the story. This story now has a super epic outline (Something I didn't have when I first began)! I suggest you read revised chapters, so that things make more sense, since a lot of revising has been done.**

 **Also, updates might be inconsistent since I'm in school again.**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Hetalia. I also do not own Bí, bí og blaka.**

* * *

 **Characters:**

 **Emil Steilsson ~ Iceland**

 **Lukas Bondevik-Steilsson ~ Norway**

 **Ada Steilsson ~ OC**

 **Erik Steilsson ~ OC**

* * *

 _ **Prologue: Licorice Story**_

 _Third Person_

"Once upon a time-"

"Why do all your stories start with, 'Once upon a time'?"

"Emil, don't interrupt me, please."

"Yes, big brother."

"As I was saying, once upon a time, there was a little fairy boy," Lukas said, setting his phone on the table.

Lukas Bondevik-Steilsson was fourteen years old and the son of Ada Bondevik. When he was five years old, however, his mother remarried. His mother's last name changed, while he gained a second one. From that point on he was Lukas Bondevik-Steilsson.

And when Lukas turned seven years old, he was no longer Lukas Bondevik-Steilsson, only son of Ada and step-son of Erik, no, Lukas was now the eldest son of Ada and Erik. Because the greatest thing to come into Lukas' life was born, a month after his birthday, and Lukas could not have asked for a better birthday gift.

Emil Steilsson was seven years old, the youngest son of Ada and Erik and the baby brother of Lukas. Sadly, he would be the last son of Ada and Erik. Ada Steilsson had died while giving birth to the little bundle of joy, sacrificing her life for his.

The death of his mother had hit Lukas like a brick against glass. His whole world had shattered in a matter of only a few hours, and it left a mental scar on his young mind. What child wouldn't feel terrible after witnessing their mother's death?

It was Emil's presence that stopped Lukas from becoming a complete recluse. His mother's death had been terrible, especially since Lukas had been in the room when he saw his mother take his last breath. Emil, however, he would never know his mother. The constant presence of a child that needed attention kept Lukas busy and didn't give him as much time to brood. And although Lukas had at first been a little bitter to Emil, after a year, the two had practically become inseparable.

Often times, when Lukas came home from school, mentally exhausted and completely done with the world, it was Emil who cheered him up. The oblivious child would beg his brother to play with him, tugging at his sleeves and whining to him with the gurgled words of a still-learning mind.

No matter how bad a day he was having, Lukas would gladly comply to whatever Emil wanted.

"He had wings so strong that he could blow a mountain away," Lukas continued. He motioned for his little brother to move aside on the bed.

The two brothers were currently in Lukas' room. At Emil's insistence, they were having a "sleep over". Their father, Erik, was supposed to join them, but had an excessive amount of paperwork to complete. So now, the only members of the "sleep over" was Lukas, Emil, and Emil's stuffed puffin, which he affectionately called Mr. Puffin.

"Lukas, does the fairy boy like licorice?" Emil asked, moving over so that his big brother had room on the bed too.

He offered a small smile to the younger boy, as he took his place on the large bed. "Of course he does," Lukas said, pulling the blanket up for both of them.

* * *

A silence filled the bedroom. Lukas stared at his brother, waiting for his inevitable comments, since Emil always seemed to have something to say about his stories.

"That was a sad story," Emil mumbled, ducking his head underneath the blanket. He stretched his hands around him, trying to look for his stuffed friend under the blanket. Unknowingly, he had left his stuffed puffin on top of the covers.

He could hear his older brother's soft chuckle at the statement. "But it has an important lesson, Emil," Lukas said, patting where Emil's covered head was.

Emil gave no response.

Instead, Emil popped his head out of the blanket, causing Mr. Puffin to fly up.

A yelp escaped from the younger boy's throat, and almost immediately, Lukas' hands flew up to catch the toy.

"Thank you big brother," Emil mumbled, reaching out for the puffin that was still in his sibling's hands. His short arms stretched as far as they possibly could, fingers wiggling in anticipation as he waited for his older brother to give him his friend.

"Do you know what the story's lesson is, Emil?" Lukas asked, holding the stuffed toy farther away from his brother's reach. He had not planned to ask Emil if he knew the moral of the story he had just read him, but the opportunity had appeared and the idea had formed in his head already, so he supposed that he might as well act.

"I don't know, big brother. Can I have Mr. Puffin now?" Emil said, leaning forward in an attempt to get to the toy.

"I'll give you Mr. Puffin if you tell me what the moral of the story was," Lukas said, gently batting away Emil's hands once they got a little too close to the puffin.

Emil pouted, crossing his arms and turning so that he didn't face his brother. He sat up on the bed now, legs tucked underneath him. Occasionally, his eyes would dart to Lukas, who was petting the top of Mr. Puffin's head and looking at him expectantly.

A sigh escaped him, and Emil turned back to face his brother.

"Well, he had those wings that were really, really strong," Emil began, his hands moving through the air to exaggerate his words further, "His life was super fun until he lost the wings. I think you were trying to tell me that life isn't easy without wings."

Lukas laughed a little, a hand reaching out to ruffle Emil's hair. It had not been the answer he was looking for, but he was content that Emil had at least tried, if only just a little bit.

"I was trying to tell you to not take things for granted, Emil," he said, handing Mr. Puffin to the boy.

"I don't know what 'for granted' means," Emil said, eagerly taking his friend back from his brother. He squeezed the puffin close to his chest, arms wrapping around it protectively.

"Emil, I'm trying to say that you should be thankful for what you have now, like Mr. Puffin," Lukas replied, turning off the lamp so that the room became enveloped in darkness. He heard his brother squeak at the sudden absence in light. The covers were then pulled back up, resting nice and snug on top of the brothers.

"Goodnight, big brother."

"Goodnight, Emil."

* * *

"Big brother?" a small voice mumbled, drowned in sleepiness. Emil's eyes were still closed when he sat up in the bed. Wiping the sleep from his eyes, he looked up to see Lukas, who was standing in the doorway to the bedroom.

"Emil! Why are you awake?" Lukas whispered, dropping what was in his hands to rush over to his little brother. He went to the side of the bed where his brother had been sleeping.

The drowsy boy didn't answer the question. "Why are you awake?" Emil said, asking his brother the same question that he had been asked.

"I-I'm just going to use the bathroom," Lukas said, "Go back to sleep, Emil."

"But I can't, will you sing me a lullaby?" Emil asked, one of his hands reaching out and gripping onto the sleeve of Lukas' shirt.

"Of course I will, Emil. As long as you promise to fall asleep," he said, sitting on the bed beside him. Emil nodded, laying his head back down onto the pillow. Lukas was silent for a few moments, before coughing awkwardly to warm up his voice.

"Bí, bí og blaka álftirnar kvaka."

A cold hand ran through Emil's hair, but he didn't mind, if anything, Emil found it comforting. His brother's hands always seemed to be cold, even when Emil tried to warm them with his own. But Lukas' touch always provided a different type of warmth, like that of a mother's hand comforting their child.

"Ég læt sem ég sofi en samt mun ég vaka."

Emil curled up, Mr. Puffin held close to his chest, and his knees tucked in. The blanket twisted a little, but was otherwise undisturbed in its position atop the boy. It was a heartwarming sight, if one happened to see it. An older brother singing softly despite a hoarse voice. It was just enough to coax the younger brother to sleep.

"Bíum, bíum, bamba, börnin litlu ramba,"

By now, Emil's eyes were closed. He was still awake, but just barely. Lukas' lullabies were always a sure way to put him to sleep, especially when they were in Icelandic. Lukas had learned Icelandic, with a little help from Emil's father, so that he could help Emil learn it. He didn't speak in Icelandic much, only when he was teaching Emil or when the special occasion arose that he would sing.

"...fram á fjallakamba ad leita sér lamba."

Emil always loved it when Lukas sang, and before he knew it, he had fallen back into slumber.

* * *

Emil woke up in a cold sweat, sitting up in bed.

He had had a terrible nightmare, just like the story Lukas told him. In his dream, he had been the fairy boy. And he had been soaring so high above the clouds, his big brother and father cheering him on from down below. Suddenly, however, he was falling. When he landed on the ground, he could not see his brother or dad anywhere, and was instead surrounded by his classmates. They laughed and teased him, shouting harsh names that a child their age shouldn't even know. One child had even picked up a rock, aiming at him.

Thankfully, Emil had woken up before the rock could hit him.

"L-lukas? Big brother, where are you?" Emil whimpered, getting out of the bed. It felt so empty and cold, and he wanted to get out of it as fast as he could.

There was a feeling of dread in his heart as he looked around the room, hoping that his brother might be there. The fluorescent lights of the digital clock told Emil that it was way too early for him to be awake. His own, aching head told him to go back to bed.

Mr. Puffin in hand, Emil journeyed out of the room, once he saw that Lukas was not in there. He made his way towards the bathroom, thinking that maybe his brother was still in there. Emil had not made note of the time when he had woken up earlier that night, and so had no idea how long it had been since he fell back asleep.

The lights in the bathroom nearby were not on. He made his way downstairs, where the other bathroom was. In his head, Emil thought that Lukas might have wanted to go to the bathroom downstairs instead. However, when he reached it, there was no one in them, either.

Along the way back up, Emil looked through the kitchen and even the living room. The results were the same, though. He found no trace of his big brother.

* * *

"Pabbi! Pabbi, wake up!" Emil whispered, climbing on top of his dad's sleeping form.

Erik stirred in his sleep a little, turning onto his side and causing Emil to promptly fall off the bed. He hit the floor with a loud thud. However, Emil was quickly back up again, climbing back onto the bed. He took a deep breath, before leaping onto his dad.

"Andskotinn! Eh? Emil, what are you doing?" Erik asked as he sat up on the bed. He ran a hand through his hair, staring wearily at his youngest son.

"Pabbi I can't find bróðir!"

"Hvað?" Erik exclaimed, shooting out of bed, suddenly awake. he grabbed Emil, lifting him up off the bed and into his arms instead. In return, one of Emil's hands gripped tightly onto his dad's sleeping shirt, holding on tightly.

Instead of taking Emil through the house with him to help him search, however, Erik brought the small boy back to his bedroom.

"Emil, wait here, you should get more sleep," he said.

A whine escaped Emil's mouth, and his arms reached up to grab onto the sleeve of his father's shirt. However, as he was about to protest more, a large yawn escaped his mouth. When the boy glanced at his digital clock, he could see the blurry numbers that glared at him with their neon glow. It hurt his head to stare at it. Mr. Puffin being placed in his hands and the blanket being pulled up to his chest, Emil was finding it harder and harder to keep his consciousness.

As he slipped back into sleep, Emil watched his dad leave the room.

* * *

 **Author's Note: How did I do? I'm really excited for the new plans I've made for this fanfic! Anyway, thanks for reading! Reviews are much appreciated!**


	2. Licorice Silence

**Author's Note: Chapter one, hooray! Seriously though, I have heavily revised things, so read the revised chapters! -please- Also, if you noticed, I changed the genre of this story, it's no longer a romance. That doesn't mean the romance won't be there, though. There's still going to be plenty of romance, it just won't be as big of a component as it was.**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Hetalia**

* * *

 **Characters:**

 **Emil Steilsson ~ Emil**

 **Erik Steilsson ~ OC**

 **Ada Steilsson ~ OC**

 **Lukas Bondevik-Steilsson ~ Norway**

* * *

 _ **Chapter 1: Licorice Silence**_

 _Third Person_

A Year Later

A groan slipped out from underneath the crumpled bed sheets that were piled on top of the twin sized bed.

In a forgotten corner of the room was a backpack, papers sticking out messily and broken pencils scattered around. An unused desk covered in dust was nearby, a box containing far too many cards being the only thing on top of it. The bedside dresser was cluttered with mess. There was an antique lamp, an annoyingly loud digital alarm clock, a picture frame that was facing down, and various small toys that were either of animals or people.

Emerging from the mess of a bed with equally messy hair was Emil Steilsson. Gripped tightly in one of his hands was Mr. Puffin, while the other rubbed the sleepiness out of his eyes.

After he finally managed to wake up just a little more, he directed his attention to the alarm clock nearby. His fiery violet eyes gave the obnoxious contraption a nasty glare. For a while, he glared at the fluorescent numbers, before finally ripping the blankets off of him. Bare feet swung off the bed and onto the ground as a hand slammed onto the button that would silence the alarm.

* * *

"Good morning, Emil!" Erik greeted happily. He pet his son's hair affectionately as Emil stumbled into the kitchen. A plate of eggs and the leftover mackerel from last night's dinner was placed at Emil's spot at the table. Meanwhile, Emil went to the fridge to get a glass of milk. The boy slumped over to the table with his beverage, placing Mr. Puffin in his own special seat nearby, as well.

Being Emil's only friend, Mr. Puffin obviously deserved a super special seat at the kitchen table.

Emil's father had long stopped trying to get Emil to keep the stuffed bird off the table. The young boy had been doing it since he was even younger, and by now Erik just went with it.

It was just like how he had stopped trying to get Emil to speak again.

It wasn't as if he didn't try. Oh no, Erik had done everything he could to get Emil to talk again. A thousand pieces of licorice, a trip to the zoo, hugs everyday, he had even told Emil he would get him a real puffin. Nothing worked, though.

Soon, it became apparent that the only thing that might get his son to speak again was if Lukas was found.

What had happened a year ago was so sudden. No one had expected it. In fact, no one was even sure what had actually happened.

A year ago, Lukas had disappeared.

* * *

 _"Pabbi! Pabbi! Where is bróðir? Where is he?"_

 _"Emil...Emil, I'm so sorry."_

 _"Pabbi what do you mean? Where's Lukas?"_

 _"He-he left, Emil. I found a note on the kitchen table, he left."_

 _"What do you mean? Bróðir left? Where's big brother? Pabbi?"_

* * *

Light peeked in from the hallways and into the bedroom. Inside was the sleeping form of Emil.

He twisted and turned. Blankets were kicked off the bed and pillows were thrown around, the only thing that seemed to remain in the bed was Emil himself and his beloved Mr. Puffin that was held in the boy's stiff grip. Tears gathered at the corner of his eyes, and an overall expression of pain was washed over his face.

Erik sighed, eyes downcast as he closed the door softly.

He made his way to his study, where there was a large stack of papers on his desk. He had originally planned on starting on his revision of his lesson plan for the next school year, but the single father found his way to a bookshelf in the corner of the room.

It was nearly empty. All it had were a few picture frames and two journals.

The first frame was a picture of his wedding with Ada. Lukas was in the picture, too. He had been Erik's best man, after all.

The next picture was right before Ada died. She had demanded that Erik take a picture of her with her new baby. A photo of Lukas and baby Emil was next to it, as well.

The final picture frame was the most recent, although it had been a year ago.

They had been on a family vacation to Iceland and were lucky enough to witness the northern lights. Despite having very little lighting, he managed to snap a good picture of Emil and Lukas. Lukas wore a small smile, but that was perfect for Erik and Emil. And Emil. Oh, Emil. He had the biggest smile that Erik had ever seen. It was probably even bigger than the grin of Lukas' friend, who Erik swore only ever grinned because that boy was so cheerful that he was like the sun.

But on that day, as they visited the little village of Erik's grandparents, Erik had never seen anyone happier. The little boy glowed with happiness while they were there.

Erik couldn't remember the last time he had seen Emil that happy.

The buzzing of his phone in his pocket snapped Erik back into reality and away from his memories.

"Hallo? Dette er Erik Steilsson. Oh! Hello, Mr. Wang! I speak English, do not worry," he replied, moving over to his desk, "Yes, Mr. Vargas has informed me of your situation. I will help as much as possible. Oh it is no problem! You will be here next week? I will pick you and your family up at the airport then, is that alright? No need to thank me, Mr. Wang, it is alright! Of course. It is no problem. I will see you next week, Mr. Wang!"

Setting the phone down with a sigh, Erik slumped back into his chair. He would have to rent a larger car to pick up his new coworker and his family. It would be a hassle, but he didn't mind that much.

* * *

 **Author's Note: Hooray! I wrote it (finally)! Thanks for reading and reviews are much appreciated! I suggest to not read the rest of the chapters until I revise them as well.**


	3. Chapter 2

**Author's Note: It's school time! And in my fifth grade year, my teacher grouped us into the continents. I was in Australia. :)**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Hetalia**

* * *

 _ **Characters:**_

 _ **Emil Steilsson ~ Iceland**_

 _ **Xiang "Leon" Kirkland-Wang ~ Hong Kong**_

 _ **Erik Steilsson (Lukas and Emil's father) ~ OC/Ancient Scandinavia**_

 _ **Lu V. (Emil, Leon, Im Yong Soo, Hyung Soo's teacher) ~ OC**_

 _ **Yao Wang ~ China**_

 _ **Kiku Honda (Wang) ~ Japan**_

 _ **Im Yong Soo (Wang)~ South Korea**_

 _ **Hyung Soo (Wang)~ North Korea**_

 _ **Mei Wang ~ Taiwan**_

* * *

 _Third Person_

Emil stood behind his father awkwardly. Erik was talking to the lady at the front desk about Yao's family's enrollment. He explained the family's situation to her, and after a good amount of convincing, was able to postpone the paperwork the Yao had to do to after school at a time when Yao was available. The lady then gave him various schedules and papers, showing him which paperwork belonged to which child.

With that, the Icelandic man left the office with his son and his neighbor's siblings and cousins. He quickly scanned over what teachers the children had, before turning down to the fifth grade wing of the school. By the time Erik was able to get all the paperwork and arrange the appointment for Yao, some kids had already come to school.

"Mei, was it? You're in my class, so I can let you into the classroom early. You can put your stuff down on the desk near mine, and then we'll bring your brother and cousins to their class. It seems that they have it with Emil," Erik informed, unlocking the door to his classroom. Mei walked in hesitantly, before rushing over to the large desk in one corner of the classroom and putting her things on the desk nearby.

When Mei walked out, the group then made their journey to the third grade wing, with Emil at the head of the group. The third grade hall was a fair distance away from the fifth grade hall, the only problem was that the school could sometimes be hard to navigate through. So, throughout their walk to the others' classroom, Erik pointed out certain things that the twins and Leon could use to help find their way from the fifth grade wing and third grade wing.

After a few minutes, the group made it to Emil's classroom, Emil's teacher was already there, wondering where the young Steilsson had went.

"Emil! I was wondering where you were when I didn't see you waiting outside the door!" the teacher exclaimed, running up to the white-haired boy.

"Hello Lu, you have some new students, all these boys, though they haven't been registered yet," Erik said, motioning towards the group of third graders behind them. With that being said, Lu, Emil's teacher, directed her attention towards the family who mostly hid behind Emil's father.

The young teacher was distantly related to Emil's deceased mother, but only by marriage. The woman worked in the same company that Erik did, which was how they met and were able to arrange Emil staying in her classroom early. She was from Finland, and had a husband and son there, but in order to support them, she took the job offer in Norway. Her intent was to go back to Finland before her son turned fifteen, which meant that she only had one year left in Norway, and Emil's class would be her last in the country. As for how close she was to Emil and his father, it was because of that distant family relation and because Emil would always be in her class before herself.

"It's a pleasure to meet you all! I don't suppose you've already learned Norwegian yet?" Lu said, crouching down to the height of the eight year old boys that were nudged forward by Erik.

"No," Leon bluntly answered, staring at the woman with his expressionless face.

"Oh, well that won't be a problem. I'm sure Emil can help you, won't you Emil?" Lu replied, turning her head to face the quiet boy who was behind her. Emil shyly nodded, looking at the locked classroom. "Hm? Oh, that's right! Sorry, I can be forgetful sometimes, don't worry, Erik, I'll take care of my new students, go ahead to your own class," Lu rambled, unlocking the door to allow Emil to rush inside.

With that, Emil's dad and Mei walked backed to the fifth grade hall. Im Yong Soo, Hyung Soo, and Leon all stood there awkwardly, waiting for the lady who would be their teacher to say something. Emil, on the other hand, was already preparing himself for the rest of the class. He seated himself in his assigned desk, taking out a white board and a marker.

The woman smiled at her new students, standing up from her crouched position. As she dusted herself off, she began to talk in English.

"Well, I'm your new teacher, Ms. V. Since you'll be coming to school early with Emil, you can learn Norwegian during the time before class," Lu said, leading the three eight year old boys into her classroom.

To Leon, who's former school was small and in a city rather than a suburb, the classroom was definitely different. There were twenty desks, which were put into groups, each group labeled as a continent. Ms. V. had two large desks in her own corner, one of which was meticulously decorated with photos and crafts while the other had books and files and multiple lesson plans. Behind the desk were multiple flags, ranging from Finland to America to Japan.

On one side of the room was a row of many short bookcases and a piano, with a giant map of the world pinned to the wall. The other side of the room had two large whiteboards, surrounded by posters with encouraging words and fun jokes. Over all, it seemed like a nice learning environment.

"Come here, boys," Ms. V. said, motioning for the three Asians to walk over to her desk with her, seeing how they were standing in the doorway awkwardly and staring at the room.

Im Yong Soo, the happy little bubble he was, practically skipped over, dragging his twin brother along. Leon, being more reserved and not having an overly out-going twin brother, walked behind, taking large steps in order to keep up with his Korean cousins. On the way there, he found himself walking past Emil, who was making himself at home in a lone desk, the continent name of 'Antarctica' hanging above it.

For the few seconds that Leon passed by Emil, it sure seemed like hours. Every step he took echoed in his ears as he got closer and closer to the white-haired boy. And as for the one moment when he was standing right next to him, Leon found himself almost freezing in place when their hands brushed against each other for only a second or two. Once Leon completely passed Emil, he let out a breath that he didn't know he was holding in.

Emil on the other hand, felt his face burst into flames. Again. Emil could not remember the last time that he had blushed so much. Oh right, there was never a time in which he blushed twice in a day. Or for ten minutes straight, which was how long it took for the car ride to finish. For some odd reason, Emil's father seemed to reach every red stop light, every single time. Emil wouldn't complain about a long car ride, but if you add the fact that he was sitting on someone else's lap and there was a rambunctious Korean sitting with you, the car ride was suddenly very tiring.

Back to the situation at hand, however, Emil was blushing. A lot. All because Leon's hand just barely brushed against his. And that wasn't exactly a reason to be blushing so much, but even a minute after that small occurrence, Emil was still blushing. In fact, he felt as if he was glued to the floor, because his body wouldn't move. Finally, he was snapped back to reality, after his teacher began talking to the three boys.

"Okei, let's see. You two might need name tags," Ms. V. said, referring to the twins standing in front of her desk, before turning to Leon, "And you're Xiang, right?"

"I prefer Leon," the golden-eyed boy replied quickly, not allowing his teacher to speak further.

"Leon? Well, that'll be easier for your classmates to pronounce. Now, which group do you guys want to be in? Some groups have already reached their maximum amount of five students," Ms. V. asked, pointing to the various groups located around the room.

In total, there were six groups around the room. Asia and Europe were the only groups with a total of five desks, meaning that the groups were not available for joining. It was a shame, too, it made sense that the actual Asians in the class would be in the group called 'Asia', but it wasn't available, so there was nothing the boys could do about it.

That left the three to sit in either North America, South America, Africa, or Antarctica. Of course, you can easily guess where they sat.

They sat in North America of course!

No, no they did not. What would you do if you were a young foreigner in a school where you knew none of your classmates save for one? Would you sit with the person you knew, like a rational person, or would you sit in a table with occupants you knew nothing about?

Emil had then found himself in another predicament. Im Yong Soo and Hyung Soo had sat at the North America table, because Im Yong Soo wanted to meet new people and Hyung Soo followed his brother because if they weren't together, then it would be harder to confuse people. Because that was the twins' main show in their long list of pranks. Now Leon, on the other hand, well, he couldn't sit with his cousins, because those two made North America a group of five. So where did Leon sit, because he was a rational person? He sat next to Emil, of course.

So, because Leon was once again in close proximity of him, Emil was blushing for the umpteenth time.

* * *

Ms. V. had asked the four boys sitting in her class if they wanted to go outside and play with the other children on the playground. Im Yong Soo practically jumped at the chance, and ran outside with his twin brother being dragged behind him. Of course, the cousins forgot that they didn't know which way outside was, so they were currently wandering the hallways, lost and confused.

Leon stood up as well, but he stopped before he moved away from his desk, looking at Emil to see if he would be coming with them. After getting no response from the violet eyed boy, he looked to his teacher, almost silently asking her to help.

Ms. V. only sighed in exasperation, speaking to Emil rather than Leon. However, she did speak in English, so that Leon would be able to understand. "Emil, why don't you go outside with Leon? I'm sure he'll feel more comfortable walking out of the class with someone he knows, since his cousins are already outside," Ms. V. asked nicely, giving the young boy a hopeful stare.

Leon then turned his focus back to Emil, who was getting up from his seat and putting his jacket on. He said no words, only grabbing Leon's hand and leading him out the classroom.

"Takk!" Ms. V. shouted to Emil, waving at them with a smile as they exited her classroom to venture outside.

With the children gone, Lu returned to her paperwork. Her head turned to her personal desk, covered in crafts and presents from her students and pictures of her friends and family. Her gaze softened however, when she looked at the picture of her husband and only son. Thinking about Emil, her mind remembered her son's best friend, who, like Emil, did not have any friends before he met her son.

Lu jumped out of her seat, an idea coming to mind. 'Leon's the only person I've seen, who is Emil's age, that has gotten remotely close to Emil. If I can get them to become good friends, then Emil might open up!'

The teacher childishly giggled, opening a cabinet holding the papers and assignments of her students. She quickly took out four empty ones. For three of the empty folders, she wrote down the names of her new students. The fourth one, however, she wrote down the strategically named title of her new operation for getting Emil more friends.

"Let's see, 'Operation: Make Leon friends with Emil' is too long. Maybe 'Operation: Friends'? No, that's too simple. Wait, Leon's from Hong Kong, right? And Emil's from Iceland, so I'll name it 'Operation: HongIce' then! That way, no one will understand what the folder is about, since it isn't specific!" Ms. V. said aloud, talking to herself.

With the folders done, Lu began writing down a list of ideas to help Leon and Emil become friends. Yes, the teacher was dead set on getting her most anti-social student a friend his age. With no hesitation, Ms. V. began to put 'Operation: HongIce' into action.

* * *

 **Translations:**

 **Takk - Thank you**

 **Author's Note: I only know Swedish, so I don't know if I spelled that right. Yes, I name the operation, 'Operation: HongIce', not very creative, I know. It's a miracle I've made two OC in a Hetalia fanfic, because I don't like making OC in Hetalia fanfics. Anyway, reviews are very much appreciated!**


	4. Chapter 3

**Author's Note: The beginning of this was originally supposed to be part of Chapter 2. And I'm sorry, I procrastinated in writing this.**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Hetalia**

* * *

 _ **Characters:**_

 _ **Emil Steilsson ~ Iceland**_

 _ **Xiang "Leon" Kirkland-Wang ~ Hong Kong**_

 _ **Lu V. (teacher) ~ OC**_

 _ **Im Yong Soo ~ South Korea**_

 _ **Hyung Soo ~ North Korea**_

* * *

 _Third Person_

Internally, Emil was screaming. Why? Because he was socializing.

Okay, that wasn't exactly why he was mentally panicking, but you get the gist of it. Emil was shy, and for almost a year, his shy behavior was getting worse. Emil didn't have any friends that he wasn't related to. Mr. Puffin didn't count, because Mr. Puffin is special, and Ms. V. is his teacher. So in the end, Emil had no socializing experiences outside of his household and his teacher.

'Do friends hold hands?' Emil thought to himself, holding his jacket closer to him, and loosening his already loose grip on Leon's hand.

Emil's eyes flickered to Leon, who had an unreadable expression. For a few seconds his violet eyes lingered, staring intently at Leon's golden eyes. The saying was that the eyes were the gateway to the soul, at least that's what Emil's father had told him, but Emil was unable to understand what Leon was feeling at the moment nor could he even guess what the Chinese boy was thinking of. All Emil hoped was that Leon felt nothing ill towards him and that he wasn't making him uncomfortable.

Of course, Emil was so unsure of what he was doing, he ended up picking up his pace. 'I can't even take a hint at what his mood is, right now, what if he doesn't like me? That would make things weird, though, especially since we're sitting together. Why did he choose to sit with me, anyway?' the Icelander pondered nervously.

Emil's eyes finally stopped staring at Leon when the pair of boys almost ran into a teacher when they turned a sharp corner.

"Watch where you're going, you two!" the teacher shouted, not stopping the boys who just continued to walk to their destination.

Meanwhile, Leon trying his best to keep up with the violet-eyed boy. While they were holding hands, Emil walked fast, really fast, leaving Leon stumbling and nearly tripping over his own feet as Emil guided him outside.

Leon did not mind, however, and allowed his classmate to go at his impossibly fast pace for walking, because his mind was focused on something else. To try and keep his mind off the fact that he was holding hands with Emil, Leon instead chose to stare at Emil's hair. If Leon had known any better, he would have said that his hair was whiter than snow. And Leon did not know any better, so the golden-eyed boy concluded that Emil's hair, which was so pale, was whiter than freshly fallen snow. And that was definitely worth staring at for a few minutes.

* * *

When the two finally reached the playground, they found Im Yong Soo and Hyung Soo already there, socializing, or at least trying, with the kids who had gotten to school early.

There were not many kids who were playing on the playground, since most who came to school early were either in a classroom or they were inside the cafeteria, eating breakfast. The kids that were on the playground, however, were mainly older kids. Emil knew some of them, because they were in his father's class, and he could also see one or two of his classmates playing in the fields.

Emil rarely went to the playing ground or to the cafeteria to eat breakfast. He already ate at home, so he had no need to have to go to the cafeteria. He never had anyone to play with at the playground, either. It wasn't like Emil wanted to play in the cold, anyway. He was used to the cold, but he would much rather stay inside a warm classroom, getting a head start in his studies and occasionally even being taught how to play the piano by Ms. V.

"My name is Im Yong Soo, da-ze!" the more rambunctious Korean twin shouted, waving at one of the older boys at the top of the slides. Hyung Soo, on the other hand, was surprisingly shy, standing behind his brother with his eyes downcast towards the ground. When he lifted his eyes off the ground, Hyung Soo caught sight of his cousin.

"I'm going to get Leon, okay?" Hyung Soo whispered to his brother, before walking over to the two boys who had just gotten outside.

With Leon's cousin heading towards them, Emil quickly released his hand from Leon's hand. Once Hyung Soo reached them, Emil began to head indoors, already feeling out of place.

Before Leon could ask Emil if he wanted to play together, the Icelander was already gone.

* * *

Lu slouched in her chair, a loud sigh releasing from her lips. In five minutes she had managed to create only ten ways to get Leon to become Emil's friend. It wasn't much, but the teacher decided that they would have to do until she had time to make more. Plus, most of the five minutes was spent on writing down notes on how she could get them to become closer everyday without elaborate schemes.

One of the more important reminders she wrote down on a stick note in Finnish, so none of her students could read it, and placed it on her computer, with the many other sticky notes she had written down. The note was supposed to remind her to put Emil and Leon together in all partner and group activities.

The rest of the reminders were written onto a list and taped onto her desk. Like the sticky note, they were in Finnish, so that the children would not be able to understand what is read. Lu had even given Emil and Leon code names in both her her notes and plans, just in case a sneaky eight year old managed to grab something, and was able to read it, or if they asked an adult, who could read Finnish, to read them what the notes read.

Like how she strategically named her new plan, her code names for Emil and Leon were so ingeniously created. Yes, you guessed it. Emil was code named 'Iceland' while Leon was given the code name, 'Hong Kong'. So clever, right?

"I'm a genius, I know, please save your applause for later when I get Leon and Emil to become friends," Lu announced aloud, talking to an imaginary crowd of people.

The teacher then turned back to her paperwork, which she had unintentionally delayed. As Lu graded the math quizzes, taking notes at the same time, Emil walked back into the classroom, without Leon.

"Huh?! Why aren't you playing with Leon, Emil?" Lu said, looking up from her paperwork.

Emil didn't answer, his eyes diverting to look at the ground, twiddling his thumbs.

Lu sighed, dropping her head into her arms, while Emil quietly shuffling towards his desk. 'This is going to be harder than I thought it would be,' Lu thought to herself, glancing at her folder labeled 'Operation: HongIce'.

The teacher dropped her red grading pen, taking the folder into her hands. 'I'll try my first plan today. The sooner, the better,' Lu mentally noted, opening the folder to reveal her great ideas.

* * *

 **Author's Note: I'm sorry. This chapter is short. Please review, it makes my day!**


	5. Chapter 4

**Author's Note: Hallå!**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Hetalia**

* * *

 _ **Characters:**_

 _ **Emil Steilsson ~ Iceland**_

 _ **Xiang "Leon" Kirkland-Wang ~ Hong Kong**_

 _ **Lu V. (teacher) ~ OC**_

 ** _Im Yong Soo ~ South Korea_**

 ** _Hyung Soo ~ North Korea_**

 ** _Lily Zwingili ~ Liechtenstein_**

 ** _Elizabeta Héderváry ~ Hungary_**

* * *

 _Third Person_

Leon followed his cousins and the rest of the students into Ms. V.'s classroom.

The mostly Norwegian students were curious about their new classmates, crowding around them asking questions. There were even a few times in which Leon's new classmates would stare at his unusual golden eyes or try and touch his dark brown hair.

But the way that Leon's classmates stared into his eyes was not the same as when Emil had stared at his eyes.

Emil's gaze was different than his classmates' curious stares. Leon noticed it, the hint of worry and reluctance that shined in the violet eyes of the half-Icelandic boy. Leon wondered why Emil was so shy, but he only placed it as part of his personality, like his own bluntness. Despite the shy glazes that Leon saw in Emil's eyes, he could also feel a burning sensation whenever he looked at Emil. As if there were a volcano hidden underneath the exterior of the timid boy, waiting to burst at any moment.

"Sit with us!" One child yelled out, waving at Leon and motioning for him to come over and sit with their group.

In his slightly above average English speaking skills, Leon answered bluntly, "I already chose a seat." With that said, the golden eyed boy walked over to his seat under the Antarctica sign.

Emil, who was reading a book, payed no attention to his classmates. It wasn't that he disliked them, it was because he was the smallest out of the class, didn't have any friends, and was too shy to make any. So in the end, Emil was left to be a sort of outcast in his classroom, despite the fact that he was a teacher's pet.

Emil staying away from his classmates and his classmates staying away from him was just daily routine. He didn't have the life-long friends from Kindergarten like them, because he had been transferred into the school in the middle of the year. In his old school, Emil at least had acquaintances to sit with during lunch, but his father had been offered a job at a primary school that didn't require them to move from their house and payed higher than the last. Of course, like all new students, Emil had received quite some attention from his classmates, but their interest in the young Steilsson had disappeared within a few hours after they learned about Emil's reluctance to open up to others.

Leon slid into his seat, glancing at his only table mate. The young boy was engrossed in the book sitting on his lap. Leon was not able to tell what Emil was reading, however, because the title of the book was in Icelandic, and Leon had barely even began learning Norwegian.

He found that his gaze had lingered a little too long, for Emil was staring back at Leon, his violet eyes trying to break into his soul and read his mind. And for the first time in a long while, Leon let his seemingly emotionless facade drop, allowing an expression of surprise to appear on his face.

His eyes had grown wide in astonishment and his cheeks red from slight embarrassment. Never before had Leon allowed someone out of his family to see such a face, that only gave room for teasing from people he could care less about.

Still, the eight year old found his golden eyes locked with a pair of violet. It wasn't until a minute or two later, when a classmate came over, did the two snap their heads away from the stare of the other.

"Leon! Emil! Why don't you guys join our group? That way we have a complete table," the girl said, twiddling her fingers. The nine year old girl, named Lily Zwingili, was the younger sister of Vash Zwingili, a secondary school student who was part of a transfer program, and was her only relative and guardian. Lily herself had not been part of the transfer program, but because Vash was her guardian and only relative, she ended up going with him. She had stayed back one year, at Vash's insistence for her to learn the language first so she could keep up with the class.

Emil's eyes went downcast, and he shook his head, not looking back up at the kind girl. On Emil's first day, she had also offered him to join her group. But Emil had declined, choosing to instead sit in solitude.

"I think I'll, like, stay here with Emil," Leon murmured quietly. His eyes flickered to Emil, who was looking away from the both of them, trying hard to concentrate on his book. When Emil's eyes almost caught sight of his staring, Leon quickly diverted his attention somewhere else.

Lily, being the ever observant person, like her big brother taught her to be, didn't miss the way Leon's eyes glanced to Emil, in an almost longing sort of way. Lily wasn't as oblivious as her classmates made her out to be. She had become an expert in observation, after years of neglect from her parents, she had learned how to read the atmosphere and situation, figure out whether or not she would eat that night. Under Vash's care, her observational skills had only grown, with her big brother taking her out hunting on occasion and his special defense training program designed to keep each other safe.

Despite Leon's emotionless face, Lily had easily recognized the way his eyes lingered towards Emil. Vash's childhood friend, Roderich, would sometimes stare at a photograph in his wallet with the same eyes. Of course, Lily never knew whom was in the photograph, the man stood proud and tall, and with height being the main issue, she had never gotten the chance.

With a thought formed in her mind, the thought that there was a chance, a small, slight chance that Leon thought of Emil in _that_ way, Lily thought up a plan, a great plan that would involve the intervention of a higher power. And no, that higher power was not the authoress.

Lily nodded her head, before skipping over to Ms. V. Said teacher was writing various notes on the board, most of which were in English.

"Ms. V.? I need your help," Lily asked, tugging on the woman's long skirt to get her attention.

"What is it, Lily? I'll see what I can do," Ms. V. replied, directing her attention to the young girl, while also trying her best to continue writing.

"I want Emil and Leon to get together," Lily bluntly and sweetly answered.

Lu's facial response to Lily was that of a face of shock. "Lily, have you been hanging out with Roderich's friend, Elizabeta?" Ms. V. asked, leaning down to Lily's height.

The concerned teacher knew about Lily's brother and his childhood friend. She also knew about said childhood friend's friend. Lu had been taking care of Elizabeta when she had first been transferred to Norway, to earn a little extra money. It was under Lu's care that Elizabeta had learned that she was actually a girl. Not long after Elizabeta had discovered that, she had began enjoying pairing boys with boys and watching romances blossom between two men.

"Yes," Lily said, innocent mirth shining in her eyes.

"Your brother might murder me," Ms. V. murmured to herself, before whispering to the girl in front of her, "Alright Lily, I'll help you. I already have plans, but if you have an idea, tell me."

"We need to completely isolate them," Lily began, "We could put them in a closet together, Elizabeta says that putting two people in a closet together always helps,"

"No, no, I'm not allowed to lock children in closets, Lily," Ms. V. said, mentally noting that she had to have a serious talk with Elizabeta.

"But other children could," Lily added, eyes diverting to her classmates for a few seconds.

"That-that is so devilish, but-but I can't exactly argue with that logic," Ms. V. thoughtfully replied, thinking hard about what Lily had said.

'This is against my personal vow as a teacher, but I also vowed to make sure all students are happy. So those two kind of cancel each other out. But still, it's wrong,' Lu contemplated, biting her lip.

"Okei, Lily, just this once I will allow something like this to happen. I will give you the keys to the closet in the classroom, but you must promise that you are doing this with the best interest to make Leon and Emil friends," Ms. V. said, passing a key to the girl.

"Right! I'll do it before we go to lunch!" Lily said happily, running off to seek the aid of two Korean twins.

'What have I done?' the teacher thought to herself, before setting the chalk piece back down.

* * *

It was lunch time, and Lu was anxious. she had given Lily permission to go through with a plan to get Leon and Emil together. The teacher was pretty sure that Lily wanted them together romantically, rather than just as friends, like she had originally intended.

It wasn't as if she would allow such a good idea to go to waste. She herself had used that technique, the lock-two-people-in-a-closet technique, when she was in high school and was trying to get her friend a date to the dance. But she did that with the intention of getting two people together romantically, and it didn't always work if the two people ended up hating each other. This, however, this was a huge risk.

Lu risked her career and the trust of her students if she allowed Lily to go through with the plan. She also risked Emil and Leon hating each other immediately instead of slowly warming up to each other and growing to accept their differences.

The teacher pursed her lips together, as she began to lead her students to the lunchroom.

"Oh! Just wait! I forgot something, can you help me get it, Leon?" Lily said, before dragging the Chinese student back to the classroom, which Ms. V. had left open. No one seemed to notice, however, when Hyung Soo went to follow them.

"I think I left it in the closet, can you open it up and check?" Lily asked, distracting Leon from seeing his cousin, who was entering the classroom.

Leon, still unaware, walked over to the closet. He opened it up, peering inside, looking for whatever Lily had forgotten. Suddenly, Leon found himself being pushed into the small space.

"Hey! Like, let me out!" Leon shouted, banging his fists against the door.

"Sorry, Xiang, but this is for your own good," Hyung Soo said, using his cousin's birth name to let him know that it was someone he knew who had done the deed.

As Hyung Soo watched the classroom and made sure that Leon would not escape, Lily ran over to her class.

"Emil! Please help! Leon got his leg stuck under a fallen bookshelf!" Lily lied, tugging at Emil's sleeve and leading him back to the classroom.

"I'll come too, da-ze!" Im Yong Soo announced, helping Lily pull Emil to the classroom.

The three children ran to the classroom, ignoring the shouts from teachers and staff members wandering the halls. Finally, they reached the classroom. Emil looked around, worried for Leon's safety, but saw no fallen bookshelf, nor did he see Leon.

The Icelander whipped his head back to Lily, who was smiling, and had begun pushing him, with Im Yong Soo's help, towards the classroom closet. When they reached the closet, Hyung Soo, who had been waiting, opened the closet, revealing Leon, and Lily and Im Yong Soo shoved Emil into the closet with him.

Emil, still shocked, stood there, against Leon, as said boy continued to attempt to open the door. Soon, however, the tell-tale click of the key locking the door echoed in their ears, and Leon stopped his attempts.

"I'm sorry, you guys, but this had to happen," Lily called out, as she and the twins exited the classroom, closing the door behind them.

* * *

Ms. V. walked into her classroom. She had left the lunchroom and decided not to head to the teacher's lounge. She was worried for Emil and Leon, and she had started regretting her decision.

'Oh gosh, please be okei, you two,' Lu mentally prayed, taking out her key to the closet. With a click, the closet was easily open. The teacher was not prepared for what was inside, however.

Ms. V. gasped, taking Emil into her arms. He was crying, his long sleeves drenched in his tears.

"Oh Emil, are you okei? Oh gosh, what happened Leon?" Ms. V. said, while Leon walked out of the closet, still carrying Emil.

"I-I think I, like, asked a sensitive question," Leon admitted, eyes downcast, "We got locked in the closet together, so to kill time I tried talking to him, but he wouldn't talk back, so I asked why and he started crying."

* * *

 **Author's Note: Happy Valentines Day! This has elements of a true story, though. In 6th grade, I was locked in a small room with multiple doors, but only the door to the field was unlocked, so I had to stay there until the next class came. And yes, I cried. But now I just laugh about it, so it's all good! Please review, follow, and favorite!**


	6. Chapter 5

**Author's Note: Hallå again! Finally, some things are revealed, I was getting tired of making sure not to slip up and make mistakes in the plot.**

 **Disclaimer: Hetalia is not mine**

* * *

 _ **Characters:**_

 _ **Emil Steilsson ~ Iceland**_

 ** _Xiang "Leon" Kirkland-Wang ~ Hong Kong_**

 ** _Erik Steilsson ~ Ancient Scandinavia/OC_**

 ** _Lu V. (teacher) ~ OC_**

 ** _Yao Wang ~ China_**

 ** _Mei Wang ~ Taiwan_**

 ** _Kiku Honda ~ Japan_**

 ** _Im Yong Soo ~ South Korea_**

 ** _Hyung Soo ~ North Korea_**

 ** _Lily Zwingili ~ Liechtenstein_**

 ** _Elizabeta_** ** _Héderváry_** ** _~ Hungary_**

* * *

 _Third Person_

Lu was sitting on the soft rug in the room, Emil in her lap, with Leon in front of her. The violet-eyed boy was crying into her shirt, arms balled into fists and gripping onto the tear soaked shirt. Leon's head was facing the ground, a guilty look washed over his face instead of the usual emotionless one.

"Start from the beginning, Leon, what happened in the closet?" the teacher asked, rubbing Emil's back in a comforting and soothing gesture.

"Right. My cousins and Lily locked us in the closet. They said it was for the greater good, or something," Leon began, not looking at his teacher's eyes.

"I already know that, Leon," Lu said.

"A-anyway, I started talking to him. But he didn't talk back, so I asked why he wouldn't talk to me, and then he began crying," Leon continued, his palms sweating as he fumbled his hands together.

 _-Flashback-_

 _"I guess we'll, like, have to wait for them to let us out," Leon said, disappointed, as he slid down against the door. Emil himself had found a slightly uncomfortable position sitting by the wall, hugging his knees._

 _A few seconds passed by, and the silence, only interrupted by the tick-tocks of the clock, had started to become overwhelming._

 _"So, I, uh, well, do you want to talk to pass the time?" Leon asked. He was glad that the closet was dark, that way the blush on his face could not be seen. Internally, Leon was thinking about how it would be nice to know more about Emil, the boy with violet eyes. He wasn't glad to be trapped in a closet, but it gave him the opportunity to befriend someone he found interesting._

 _Emil, however, did not speak. the half-Icelandic boy hugged his knees tighter, bringing them even closer to the rest of his body. For a fair amount of minutes, the two boys remained in silence, with Emil biting his lip and Leon growing anxious in the quiet and tense atmosphere._

 _"I can start, if you're, like, uncomfortable. Yao, my brother, he's been teaching me how to introduce myself, but I don't like the method he taught me," Leon started, breaking the silence._

 _Once again, Emil had not responded. Leon hesitated to continue on with his one-sided conversation. What he was doing right now, attempting to be friendly with a stranger, was not what he was used to doing. Yao had always taught him to be more open and friendly, professionally of course, but Leon had never really tried doing so._

 _"Well, my real name's Xiang, but I prefer it if people call me Leon. My favorite color is red and I like pandas," Leon said out into the darkness, loud enough so that he knew Emil would be able to hear._

 _But, for Leon, what seemed to be the umpteenth time, Emil remained quiet and did not reply._

 _"Why won't you talk to me? My brother always reprimands me for being quiet. He says it's, like, rude. He's annoying like that, you know?" Leon murmured to himself. He had thought that Emil had not heard him, but he was wrong._

 _Emil had grabbed Leon's wrist tightly, almost painfully, and would not let go. Despite the darkness of the room, violet eyes shone like a beam of light, staring at Leon with something the boy had never seen before._

 _"Hmm? Is something, like, wrong?" Leon asked worriedly, placing his hand on the hand gripping his wrist._

 _Suddenly, a choked out sob came out of Emil's throat, and Leon found his ears filled with Emil's crying._

 _-Flashback Ends-_

"You asked him why he doesn't talk?" Lu said, although it was more to herself, before she turned her complete focus back to Leon, "Leon, Emil is, how do I put it? I shouldn't be the one to tell you this. Just, just wait here, and I'll get Emil's father."

Lu left the classroom after she gently placed Emil on the rug. She raced through the corridors, trying to get to the fifth grade wing as soon as possible. When she finally made it, she didn't bother knocking on the door, and instead chose to pry it open.

"Your son needs you, he's in my classroom right now. And Leon needs an explanation, too. I'll watch your class, just go," the teacher announced, walking into the classroom, towards Emil's father.

"But my lesson plan-" Erik began, before being cut off, while he was being pushed towards the door.

"I'll make an impromptu one, it's my specialty, after all," Lu interrupted, successfully getting the man out of the room. Once Erik found himself outside of his classroom, having been forcefully removed from his class, Lu slammed the door in his face. The woman then turned around, to face the group of fifth graders that had been watching the entire exchange.

"Okei class, let's make a deal. While Mr. Steilsson is out, I'll teach you a few things about vikings. Does that sound good?" Lu announced, easily grabbing the attention of the students.

'I'll have to explain some things to Lily,' Lu mentally noted, before turning her full attention to the fifth graders. "Okei, let's begin!"

* * *

Erik Steilsson walked cautiously into the classroom. There were no children in it, because it was their lunch time, save for two boys. He recognized one of them as Yao's half-brother, Leon. the boy was sitting on a rug, head down with his hair covering his face so no one could see the expression he had. The other, he immediately saw was his son, his cheek stained by dried up tears.

"Emil? I'm here, please don't cry anymore," Erik whispered in Icelandic, stepping towards his son. He knelt down on the floor, to Emil's height, and placed his arms around the young boy.

With his son in his arms, Erik turned his head to Leon, who hadn't moved a muscle, nor had he spoken.

"You must have questions, right, Leon?" Emil's father asked. For a few minutes, Leon didn't speak, the silence above the room weighed heavily, and it had settled in such an uncomfortable position.

"I, like, didn't mean to make him cry. I just asked why he wouldn't talk to me," the boy answered, finally breaking the silence over the room.

"It's alright, you didn't know," Erik replied, "It's a little strange, though. Emil usually doesn't cry because someone mentions him not talking."

The topic of the conversation, Emil, had fallen asleep in his father's arms. When Leon looked at Emil's pale skin, stained with streaks of tears, he couldn't help but feel guilty, although he didn't know what he had exactly done wrong, he assumed that it was something he had said.

Leon bit his lip, stopping himself from blurting out things he didn't want to say. 'I also mentioned my brother, but Emil doesn't have a brother, so that comment wouldn't have affected him, right?' Leon mentally assured himself. He had not mentally prepared himself for what Emil's father was about to tell him, however.

"Emil is a selective mute. He refuses to talk, even to me," Erik began, looking up at the ceiling with a reminiscent smile on his face, "He's always been shy, but at least he talked to me before then. Gosh, I'm sorry, you have no idea what I'm talking about now."

Leon found himself becoming mute as well.

* * *

Class had been so awkward for the rest of the day.

Emil didn't talk to Leon, but this time Leon understood why. It had also seemed as if Emil was trying to ignore Leon. Though, his attempts were unsuccessful, since Leon was his partner in nearly everything they did.

Ms. V. had not stopped her plans in getting Emil and Leon to be friends, however. after the closet incident, one would think that she would have immediately dropped the plans, but after many tiring minutes of contemplation and aching thoughts, Lu had decided that friendship between Emil and Leon was still possible.

The woman had felt it too, a certain spark between the two that she believed was different than her other students. Plus, there was no person on the planet who could convince her that Emil didn't blush every time Leon was nearby. She wasn't blind, after all.

Language arts had been a struggle for Leon. Ms. V. had assigned the rest of her students projects. She then gave her three new students worksheets, containing basic words in Norwegian, and the translations in English.

Each time Leon was unsure of what he was doing, he would tap Emil on the shoulder, and silently plead for help. The Chinese boy could not find the courage to speak to Emil, not after what had happened. Emil, on the other hand, had tried his best to help Leon, but Norwegian was not his first language, his first being Icelandic, and his English was not the best. Despite what had happened earlier, Emil allowed the memory to disappear from his thoughts, something he was good at doing.

When math came around, Leon allowed himself to visibly relax. Unlike many people, he was actually fond of math. Leon managed to get through the entire lesson with ease.

Emil, was a different case, however. It seemed that for every other problem, he would ask for help. Most times, he would poke Leon's shoulder, to get his attention. Every time that happened, Leon would gather up his courage, and slowly explain the steps in English.

The day stretched on, and school had finally ended. At the end of the day, Lily had come up to the two boys, who were leaving together along with Im Yong Soo and Hyung Soo, since the three boys would be going to Emil's father's classroom to get Mei.

"I'm sorry Leon, Emil. I wanted you guys to hurry up and kiss, so I locked you in the closet," Lily apologized, though it was slightly ruined with the way she bluntly told them her reasons.

"Lily! I have to talk to you about one more thing before you go out and see your big brother!" Ms. V. frantically yelled out, running up to the young girl and dragging her over to her desk, leaving the boys to stare at them.

"Now Lily, I understand you're being honest to them, but there are some things you're not supposed to say out loud. If your big brother ever heard you say those things, he would surely have Elizabeta's head and my own," Lu whispered to the innocent girl.

* * *

"Aiyahh! Calm down Im Yong Soo! I cannot drive correctly if you keep on bothering me, aru!" Yao reprimanded.

Currently, the Chinese man's small car was packed with children, two of which wouldn't stop talking. Yao knew that Mei meant no harm, but he had an irking feeling that Im Yong Soo just wanted his attention. Of course, the boy did get attention, mostly from Hyung Soo. In the form of yelling, that is.

"Shut up, da-ze! no one wants to know about it!" Hyung Soo screamed, the verbal tic he shared with his twin slipping from his mouth.

"But I have to tell you guys about how I claimed someone's chest at recess, da-ze!" Im Yong Soo whined.

"I already know about it! I was there when it happened!" Hyung Soo grumbled, crossing his arms and slumping in his seat at the thought of such a terrible memory.

"Hyung Soo! Posture, aru!" Yao chided, glaring at the mirror, which gave him full view of his cousin's poor posture.

Kiku was ignoring the chaos, blissfully submerged in a manga. Leon tried his best to read it as well, and his adopted cousin had even moved the book so that he could look at it as well, but the manga was in Japanese, and Leon only knew a few words in that language.

Sighing, Leon changed his task from reading to searching through his backpack. The boy sifted through his things, looking for the Norwegian book that Ms. V. had given him to help him learn. He successfully found it, however, Leon found a piece of paper tucked inside the book, sticking out slightly.

Leon took out the paper, unfolding it in order to read the contents.

Written in English with penmanship that Leon thought was second best only to his older brother's, were words that made all the guilt that had crowded his mind, fly away and disappear into the cold air.

'My name is Emil Steilsson. I don't have a favorite color, but I do like puffins.'

* * *

 **Author's Note: It's my headcanon that Lily helps in the formation of relationships. So, Emil and Leon's friendship is developing now, which is good. Thank you for reading!**


	7. Chapter 6

**Author's Note: Hallå again, my friends! I procrastinated, a lot. And it's shorter than usual, sorry about that.**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own anything**

* * *

 _ **Characters:**_

 _ **Emil Steilsson ~ Iceland**_

 ** _Lukas Bondevik-Steilsson ~ Norway_**

 _ **Erik Steilsson (Emil's father) ~ Ancient Scandinavia/OC**_

* * *

 _Third Person_

Emil went straight to his room once he got home, and collapsed on his bed. His face had planted itself onto a purple pillow, and his backpack, which he had not taken off, pressed into his back. The young boy had not taken off his socks nor his shoes, and he was wrinkling his school clothes.

Despite all those factors, Emil did not move from his comfortable(?) spot. The school day had turned out to be mentally exhausting, and Emil felt no urge to do anything.

"Emil! Come down and eat some salmon that my coworkers gave me!" Emil's father yelled, informing his son of the gift he was given before the two left the school.

Groaning, Emil rolled out of his bed, landing with a thump on the floor. He scrambled out of his backpack, throwing it across the large room to the dresser. With his heavy backpack off, Emil began to take off his cream-colored sweater. He had managed to take it off, but had stopped in his tracks when he heard the shattering of glass.

Emil set his sweater onto his bed, and walked carefully in the direction of the dresser. For a few seconds, everything became quiet. The shouting of the kids running around and screaming fell deaf on Emil's ears, and his loud footsteps were drowned out by all the thoughts swirling through his mind.

Once Emil reached his destination, he knelt down, careful to avoid the shattered glass that was scattered around the floor. While on his knees, Emil carefully sifted through the fallen glass, making sure not to cut his hands. Emil held the subject of his attention delicately, as if it would collapse in his small hands.

Erik Steilsson walked up the stairs, wondering what was taking his son so long to get down and eat. He had called for him ten minutes ago, and the single father was beginning to get worried. The man reached his son's doorway, which was closed, like it always was. Erik creaked open the door, peering into his son's bedroom.

Sitting on the floor, Emil held a flimsy photo in his small hands. Immediately, Erik knew who was in the photo. There was only one photograph, not hidden inside a dusty shoe box or lost in the attic, throughout the entire house. Erik himself had not been good with photography. His wife, Emil's mother, had been the one to take all the pictures, but she had died giving birth to their son. Any pictures that were still in the house that were taken after Emil's mother's death, had been taken by a friend or a coworker.

But the single photo that resided in Emil's bedroom, it was the only picture that Erik had successfully taken, and went through the process of getting it printed out and laminated. The picture had been printed out two years after it had been taken, as a birthday present for Emil.

Dark purple eyes, that were dull with a shine of blue, stared emotionless at the camera, a small smile gracing the pale face. Long, blonde hair framed a familiar face, some of the bangs being kept back by a golden cross. A smaller, chubbier face smiled all around, happiness shining in bright, violet eyes. Short, messy blonde hair, that was so pale that is was practically whiter than snow, topped off the head of a little brother.

Lukas.

The name had slipped out of Erik's mouth, a whisper that would have disappeared with the wind, had he not been inside the shelter of his home. The slightest mention of the name, caused so much pain and happiness. Erik could feel his throat constrict around itself, his chest tightening painfully, as if all the air had been knocked out of his lungs.

Emil stared down at the picture of his older brother, his only brother. The picture of his idol, the picture of the boy whom his life had practically revolved around, brought with it, memories that Emil both wished he could forget and relive. It washed over him like an eruption of a volcano, tearing apart everything in its path. And like the lava that flowed down, tears, for the second time that day, fell from his eyes.

'Has it really been a year since he's ran away?' Erik thought, looking at his youngest son, guilt clouding his mind and heart. The Icelander walked into the room and sat down by Emil, placing a hand on his shoulder.

'Has it been a year since Emil has stopped talking?'

* * *

 **Author's Note: I made this really short, because I procrastinated, sorry. Reviews are very much appreciated.**


	8. Chapter 7

**Author's Note: Hej! I know, I'm updating late, but I figure that's better than a half-done chapter.**

 **Disclaimer: I own nothing**

* * *

 _ **Characters**_

 _ **Emil Steilsson ~ Iceland**_

 _ **Xiang "Leon" Kirkland-Wang ~ Hong Kong**_

 _ **Erik Steilsson ~ Ancient Scandinavia/OC**_

 _ **Yao Wang ~ China**_

 _ **Kiku Honda ~ Japan**_

 _ **Mei Wang ~ Taiwan**_

 _ **Im Yong Soo ~ South Korea**_

 _ **Hyung Soo ~ North Korea**_

 _ **Lukas Bondevik-Steilsson ~ Norway**_

* * *

 _Third Person_

 _-Two Days Later-_

"Thanks again for doing this. Are you sure you'll be fine?" Yao asked, as he walked to the front door of the Steilsson household, Erik Steilsson walking beside him. Kiku walked behind him, clutching the cloth of his guardian's pant leg.

"It'll be fine, Yao. Emil needs some playmates, anyway," Erik assured, opening the door for his guests and neighbors.

Today was a Saturday morning, meaning the children did not have school. But Yao, in order to support his family, had taken up a side job on the weekends, by cleaning and taking care of the house of a wealthy family. The young Chinese man would have settled for putting Kiku in charge, seeing how the Japanese boy was responsible enough, but Kiku was not able to watch the younger occupants of their household.

Before Kiku had been adopted by Yao's father, he had lived in an orphanage in rural Japan, in an area with poor education. When Kiku had been brought into the family and moved to China, he had not known Mandarin Chinese, which was what the classes were primarily taught in. So, for the duration in which Kiku lived in China, he had been able to learn Chinese in order to stay on the same level as people his age. Yao had joined the Hetalia International Education Company, however, and had received a job in Europe that payed a lot and offered free housing, which meant that Kiku, who had been too busy learning Chinese to learn English, would have to learn another language as he attended classes. In order to catch up with his classes and in order to understand his classes, Kiku took the opportunity to go to school six days a week, Monday to Saturday, where he would learn English specifically on Saturday.

And so, that was how Yao found himself at the Steilsson household, asking his neighbor if he could watch his siblings and cousins while he went to work and Kiku went to school.

Erik closed the door with a sigh, wondering how he would be able to take care of so many children. He may have been a teacher, but this was his home, which was filled with breakable and valuable things. His own sons had been so well-behaved that he did not have to worry about anything happening, but Im Yong Soo was a little ball of energy, and the Icelander was worried about how much destruction he could create.

"Flying was made in Korea, da-ze!" A loud, energetic voice screamed out, followed by an even louder crash.

* * *

Leon had not wanted to go to Emil's house, not after what had happened on Thursday.

The following day, Friday, Emil had not gone to school. Erik had a substitute that day, according to Mei, although he was the one who brought Leon and his relatives to school. The worried boy had asked Ms. V., but she told him not to worry about it and said that everything would be okay.

Now that Leon had a chance to make sure Emil was okay, however, he began to grow fearful of how Emil might act. It was more of a thing in his family, changed personalities. How it worked, was that there was a way to act strictly for public and business, and then once one reached home, they could act however they please, within certain limits, that is.

'What if Emil shows his hatred for me now, since we're not in public and surrounded by others?' Leon thought, thinking about ideas that only really applied to his family, in this case.

Leon sat awkwardly in the kitchen, where Yao had originally left everyone. Mei, however, had gone to the bathroom, and was taking an awfully long time. Im Yong Soo had wandered off, Hyung Soo following after him to try and minimize the destruction his twin may create.

In an attempt to clear his mind from the thought of himself ruining another's life, Leon began to play on his game console.

* * *

Emil woke up late.

The half-Icelander had never slept in late, not since the day his big brother had left. Some days, he had not slept at all, and would spend the time in which he was awake, writing in Icelandic until morning came.

Emil rolled out of bed, landing down with a thump. He walked past his dresser, careful to avoid glass that still remained on the floor, which held a new picture frame, with the same picture. The emotionless eyes of Lukas stared back at Emil, looking into Emil's soul and bringing back memories both painful and kind.

For a few minutes, Emil stared at the photo. Slowly, he reached over to touch the frame, barely placing his finger on the thin corner, before gently placing the frame upside down. The face of Lukas faced the dresser once more, allowing Emil to tuck back the memories of his idol.

Leaving his room, Emil stumbled down the staircase, heading straight towards the kitchen, so that he could eat breakfast.

The young boy, who was so tired, did not realize that there was someone else in the kitchen, and had head towards the refrigerator of the kitchen.

Leon had abandoned his game console, in favor of watching a white mess of hair slump through the kitchen, oblivious of its other occupant. This was a new side of Emil that Leon had not seen before, one that pretty much no one saw. If Leon had not been able to connect the dots, he would have thought that the boy in front of him was an entirely different person.

'H-he, like, kind of looks cute when he's just woken up,' Leon thought to himself. A blush, like a wildfire, spread across Leon's skin. In an attempt to hide his blush, Leon turned away his face.

Emil, however, when he turned away from the fridge, a glass of orange juice in hand, he finally realized that he was not alone. His pale skin suddenly lit up, and Emil found himself tripping over a rug.

Leon, being unable to look away from Emil's adorable form, had noticed Emil's foot catch against the rug on the kitchen tiles. In almost an instant, Leon had abandoned his game console, reaching forward to grab Emil, or at least to cushion the other boy's fall.

The game console shattered against the tiles, some parts breaking off and scattering across the floor. The shriek of glass falling and multiplying into a thousand shards echoed throughout the house. Orange juice drenched Emil and Leon, who were lying on the ground.

None of that seemed to matter to Leon, however, he was more focused on the sharp pain that spread throughout his body, like a shock of electricity, when he collided with the floor. Most of all, he was relieved that Emil unharmed, save for the sticky, orange liquid that soaked his clothes.

Erik, Im Yong Soo, and Hyung Soo came running into the kitchen, wondering what all the ruckus, that was not created by one of the twins, was about. On the floor, Erik saw his beloved son and the young boy that he was trusted to take care of. If it was only Emil who had been injured, Erik probably would have fainted at that very moment, but this time, there was another child who he had responsibility over.

The Icelander rushed over to the two kids, Erik quickly got to work; gently lifting Emil off of Leon, and setting him down and away from the glass. Emil's father set Leon down next to his son, whose eyes were still shut closed.

Leon found his head lolling over to the side to stare at the boy next to him. His golden-brown eyes that held no luster looked towards Emil. In a state of mind Leon only experienced just before he could sleep and barely after he woke up, the eight year old began to focus on Emil's features. The snowy hair that, despite drenched in orange stickiness, framed Emil's face like a glowing halo in Leon's hazed eyes. 'If only his eyes were open,' Leon thought to himself, 'I could drown in those violet eyes.'

While staring at Emil's slightly chubby, pale face, Leon found his vision darkening and his consciousness disappeared.

* * *

When Emil woke up, he found himself in pajamas that he did not remember wearing that day. The hand-me-down, navy blue pajamas from big brother Lukas that Emil kept in the back of his dresser was now adorned on himself, fitting perfectly, although they were Lukas' pajamas when he was 6 years old. Emil was worried, not because he was wearing big brother's precious pajamas, but because his favorite pajamas, which were made up of brown pajama shorts and a puffin shirt that was his absolute favorite, even though it was far too large for him.

The half-Icelander looked up, wondering where he was. Wiping his sleepy eyes, Emil found that he had been sleeping on the couch in the living room. When he rolled his head to the side, however, he was met with a sight that he wasn't mentally prepared for.

Leon was sleeping next to him, bandaged and in a pair of Emil's spare, brown pajamas.

Now, Emil was both a Bondevik and Steilsson, and neither families had the ability of being morning people. If Emil had been completely awake, he certainly would have screamed or fainted. But in Emil's dazed vision and state of mind, he found himself staring intensely at the boy next to him. His eyes wandered to Leon's eyes, that were shut tight. He thought back to the last time he had seen those eyes, just before...he had fallen.

Emil suddenly found himself awake, trying to recall what had occurred. If he could remember right, he had slipped, and then Leon had reached towards him, and grabbed him. Emil couldn't remember what had happened afterwards, except that he had hit his head on the counter top, before colliding with Leon and losing consciousness.

Violet eyes darted back towards Leon, worried. This time, however, Emil was fully awake, and he was wondering, worrying about how Leon was doing. He finally realized the bandages that were wrapped tightly around Leon's head; reached over, carefully, to touch the bandaged wound, just to make sure it was real.

However, golden eyes snapped open immediately as Emil gently touched Leon's forehead and Emil screamed.

* * *

 **Author's Note: The chapter is short, but this was the best way to end the chapter. Reviews are much appreciated!**


	9. Chapter 8

**Author's Note: I procrastinated again, but at least I got it in on time!**

 **Disclaimer: I own nothing!**

* * *

 _ **Characters:**_

 ** _Emil Steilsson ~ Iceland_**

 ** _Xiang "Leon" Kirkland-Wang ~ Hong Kong  
_**

 ** _Lily Zwingili ~ Liechtenstein_**

 ** _Vash Zwingili ~ Switzerland_**

 ** _Mei Wang ~ Taiwan_**

 ** _Kiku Honda ~ Japan_**

 ** _Im Yong Soo ~ South Korea_**

 ** _Hyung Soo ~ North Korea_**

 ** _Erik Steilsson ~ OC/Ancient Scandinavia_**

* * *

 _-Third Person-_

Leon looked around, confused. He was older, maybe thirteen or fourteen years old, and he was wearing weird clothes. A tunic, dyed a burning scarlet, fit loosely on him, its sleeves reaching far past his wrists. His sand-colored pants were tighter than he was used to and a pair of brown boots sandals dressed his feet. When he thought about it, the clothes he was wearing at the moment weren't that different from the clothes he normally wore at home, but the scratchly material it was made of was definitely something he was not used to.

For some reason, he was sitting on a tall stool in front of an island counter, made of cherry wood. He was not alone, there were other people seated throughout the building, some sitting at tables with others, talking loudly, while others sat at the island counter with him, although they distanced themselves from everyone.

From behind the counter, a girl, who looked awfully similar to Lily from his new third grade class, walked up to him, a plate of food and a pint of some drink in her hands. She wasn't wearing a pink dress like she did in real life, though, and her hair wasn't in two long braids. Instead, this older version of Lily wore a long-sleeved, blue tunic with matching, loose pants. And her hair had been cut straight, ending at her shoulders. If it hadn't been for the ribbon in her hair, Leon swore he would have thought she was a boy.

"Here you go, sir," she said politely.

Unsure of what to do, Leon decided that he might as well eat the food presented to him. It was good, though he found it a little salty. He continued to eat his food, trying his best to ignore everyone else. It was hard, though, seeing how the place he was in seemed so strange. The people were all dressed so strangely, some of them even wore capes and big hats. A few of the men had swords or daggers strapped onto themselves or lying nearby, which frightened Leon a little bit. The building he was in was weird in itself, as well. Instead of light bulbs illuminating the place, candles at every table, hanging from the ceiling and placed on the wall lit the restaurant-like building. It seemed weird to Leon that the place would use candles when light bulbs were more efficient and last longer. Everything was wooden too, not a single thing was metal or plastic, except for a few glass items here and there.

Leon was drawn away from his thoughts when someone loudly entered the room. Everyone had gone quiet and everyone's eyes were on the person who had walked in, except for Lily's and the other boy behind the counter who resembled her. The person was around his stature, and a brown cloak shielded any notable features Leon could look for. All Leon could see was the pale skin of the person's lower face and lips pressed into a thin line of discontent.

The figure, who Leon was assuming was a guy, made his way towards the island counter. There were only two other stools at the counter, however, and both of which were right next to Leon. Leon visibly tensed when the person sat next to him, not saying a word, drawing the hood of the cloak farther down to hide his face even more so.

Lily walked over to the person, a kind, sympathetic smile on her face. "No luck today?" she asked. Everyone in the room seemed to have gone back to normal, acting as if nothing had happened, as if no one had walked in.

The mysterious person that had walked in shook his head, accepting the cup that Lily offered him. Lily's smile disappeared and she walked away, grabbing a tray piled high with plates of food and pitchers of drinks. For a while, Leon found himself staring at the stranger, questions running through his mind. His staring was eventually noticed, however, and the stranger eventually turned his head. A violent glare, filled with anger met Leon's eyes. It was quite obvious that this person did not want to be bothered, but Leon could not help but be even more distracted once he saw the stranger eyes.

Violet. The eyes were violet, a stunning, bright, beautiful violet that was all too familiar to Leon.

"Emil?" he whispered, almost too quiet to hear in the loud environment.

Nearly immediately, Leon found himself pinned against the table, a dagger pressed against his neck. The attention of everyone in the room was turned towards Leon and the stranger who had the same eyes as Emil. The boy behind the counter rushed towards them, an angry expression on his face.

"I thought I made it clear that there would be no fights here," he growled, ripping the person off of Leon.

At the same moment, the hood covering his face came flying back, revealing a mess of white hair perched on top of a pale-skinned head. All the features of Emil Steilsson, the mute boy that Leon lived across from, were exact, save for the fact that he looked older, slightly taller and skinnier. The glare that Emil had directed at Leon had intensified, becoming nearly deadly.

"He knows my name, _I thought I made it clear_ that no one was to know my identity while I was in your village," Emil retorted. Leon had never heard Emil's voice before. This voice, heavily accented and quiet, sent shivers up Leon's spine, causing him to blush a little as well.

The man paused for a second, before turning over to Lily, and nodding his head. He grabbed Leon by the collar of his tunic, and dragged him, Emil following closely, behind the counter and through a door. The moment they entered the room, the man tossed Leon to the floor, before turning and locking the door. Leon managed to get back on his feet, but he was immediately met with two swords. They were sharp and glimmered in the low light of the room. He slowly raised his hands up, his eyes trailing towards Emil.

"State your name, and how you knew that Prince Emil was in this village," the man who resembled Lily interrogated.

'Prince?! Wait, what in the world is happening?' Leon began to internally question.

"I, like, have no idea what you are talking about, I don't know any princes, well, except for those in animes," Leon answered reluctantly, confused more than he ever was. He was telling the truth, though, he had never known any royalty, except for the ones in the animes that Mei and Kiku watched.

"Then how do you know my name?! Tell me, what do you hope to gain by telling my father of my whereabouts?" Emil questioned, his voice once again bringing a chill through Leon's bones.

"I don't know what you're talking about, but, like, your eyes are unique, I really like them," Leon admitted, although he mumbled the last part.

When Emil heard the compliment towards his eyes, he lowered his sword a little, his guard dropping. A blush was spread across this older Emil's face, erupting like a volcano. It was the way that Emil always seemed to blush. Leon thought about it for a bit, and he realized that this was his only chance to escape possible death. Sure it seemed nice that he could continue standing in the same room as this older Emil, who talked in that hypnotizing voice, but Leon was not an idiot. He knew when he was in danger, and he had never felt threatened more than this moment.

Leon stretched back his legs a little, before suddenly bursting forward, running past Emil and the other man. He crashed through the door, wincing as he ran past the splintered and broken wood. He ran past older Lily, past his unfinished food, and past the strange people. He continued to run, not caring that people were shouting at him nor that he had already ran into a forest. Behind him, he knew that Emil was chasing after him, and was slowly, but surely, getting closer and closer to Leon.

However, Emil was soon right next to him, and Leon found himself being tackled to the ground. What he didn't expect, was the consequence of the older Emil tackling him down. His lips crashed against Emil's.

Whether it be from shock or because the kiss was amazing, neither of the boys moved away. Their eyes were wide with astonishment, and Leon was mentally contemplating what to do. They were still in that position when the man who looked like Lily found them. From the corner of his eye, Leon could see the man step back, hesitating with whatever he had planned. Not long after the man arrived, however, Emil and Leon were torn apart.

When Leon stared at the older Emil, he couldn't help but notice how dazed he looked. Leon sat on the forest floor, still trying to comprehend what had happened. Soon, however, Emil was standing up again, and walking towards Leon, the bangs of his snow-white hair covering his violet eyes. Leon found himself being lifted off the ground and onto his feet. Before Leon could say anything, Emil had punched him in the face.

* * *

Leon's eyes snapped open, only to be met with those haunting, familiar violet eyes. Leon could feel butterfly touches of delicate fingers on his forehead. A scream suddenly fell out of Emil's mouth, and if Leon had not been surprised by Emil's screaming, he probably would have been screaming too.

'So it was a dream?' he thought to himself as he crawled towards Emil, who was hiding behind a giant pillow. Disregarding the fact that there were bandages around his head and tightly wound around his chest and that he was wearing clothes that were not his, Leon moved forward. He winced slightly when he felt a sharp pain in his back, but he continued to move towards Emil. It was not the older Emil in his dream, it was the real Emil. 'Like, what happened to me?' Leon pondered as he reached towards the pillow, moving it slightly away from Emil. On the other hand, Emil was finally calming down. He allowed his guest to move the pillow away from himself, and for a few moment, the two remained on the couch, staring at each other.

"Ooh, da-ze! They're awake!" a rambunctious voice announced, disrupting the comfortable silence that had settled over the two other boys. The living room was suddenly filled with many people.

"Thank goodness you boys are alright, I was so worried," Erik said, rushing over to his son and Leon. Emil tugged on the sleeve of his father's shirt, and Erik turned towards his son, "Is something wrong, Emil?"

Emil began rubbing his throat, trying desperately to tell his father of his predicament. Erik shook his head, however, unsure of what Emil was trying to tell him. He attempted guessing what Emil wanted to say, but all of his guesses were wrong.

"Honey," Leon said, interrupting Erik's guesses, "He was screaming earlier, I think his throat is sore. Yao usually gives us honey when our throats are sore. If not, then salt water usually works."

Emil's father nodded, walking to the kitchen to find some honey. As that occurred, Im Yong Soo, Hyung Soo, and Mei crowded around the two boys, asking many questions. Some of them were about their well-being and others, Im Yong Soo's questions to be exact, made no sense. Emil would attempt to answer the questions by shaking and nodding his head, but some of the questions required more explanations that he could not tell them without a paper and pen.

* * *

 **Author's Note: Tack så mycket for reading this chapter! Please review, it motivates me!**


	10. Chapter 9

**Author's Note: Hej! I didn't procrastinate this time!**

 **Disclaimer: This is a website for fanfiction, of course I don't own Hetalia!**

* * *

 _ **Characters:**_

 _ **Xiang "Leon" Kirkland-Wang ~ Hong Kong**_

 _ **Yao Wang ~ China**_

 _ **Erik Steilsson ~ OC/Ancient Scandinavia**_

 _ **Im Yong Soo ~ South Korea**_

 ** _Hyung Soo ~ North Korea_**

 ** _Kiku Honda ~ Japan_**

 ** _Mei Wang ~ Taiwan_**

 _ **Arthur Kirkland ~ England**_

 _ **Britannia Kirkland ~ OC/Ancient Britain**_

* * *

 _-Third Person-_

Yao Wang was not having a good day. Yesterday, when he had gone to pick up his siblings and cousins, a distressed Erik had opened the door. Yao would then return home with an injured half-brother. Yao had gotten very little sleep because of that.

His day had began stressful, with an energetic ball of a Korean jumping on his bed, screaming for food. He was having back pains when he woke up, and Im Yong Soo falling onto his stomach certainly didn't help. Yao reluctantly trudged to the kitchen, his hair disheveled. And he had been greeted with an awful sight that practically spelled out his death.

Hyung Soo had gotten Kiku angry.

It wasn't the red-faced, quietly fuming type of angry that Kiku usually had, no, it just had to be much worse. Even Kiku's passive-aggressive anger was bad in itself. The fact that someone managed to get Kiku, the most level-headed person in his family, angry, was saying a lot. But Hyung Soo managed to do so, probably through an elaborate prank that he put together with his twin brother. Yao was guessing that Hyung Soo had done something to Kiku's manga.

Somehow, Kiku had taken the decorative katana, that was mounted on the wall of their kitchen, and was now pointing it towards Hyung Soo. The dangerous weapon gleamed like the fire in the Japanese boy's eyes. The only protection that Hyung Soo had was a fork and a spoon, both of which were bent terribly out of shape. Yao sighed, realizing that the fight had already began.

Calmly, the young Chinese man walked to his adopted brother. Immediately, Kiku changed out of his fighting stance, lowering the sword to point it to the ground. From out of his eyes, Yao could see his Korean cousin visibly relax, nearly collapsing into a nearby chair.

"Aiya, I can expect this from Im Yong Soo, Hyung Soo, or even Mei, but not you Kiku," Yao reprimanded, taking the decorative blade from the twelve year old's hands.

"I apologize," Kiku quickly said, bowing his head down.

"It's okay, aru. I'll let you get away with it this time," Yao replied, patting Kiku's head. The young man then walked over to the other side of the kitchen, grabbing a skillet and metal spatula. "Any ideas on what I should cook for breakfast?" Yao asked, setting down the kitchen utensils so he could tie his hair back.

It just happened to be that Mei walked in at that moment, and the girl immediately piped up at the question, already knowing what she wanted. "Cook some fried rice! But do it Filipino style, we haven't had that in a while," she answered, sitting down at the kitchen table. Yao nodded, moving to get the ingredients out of the fridge. As he did so, Kiku began setting the table, grabbing plates and spoons for everyone.

When the family had moved there, they had to leave many things behind in China. This included Yao's friends from Tibet and India and the children's friends from Macau, Vietnam and Thailand. More importantly, for Yao, they had to leave behind all of his cooking utensils. It had been very traumatizing for Yao when he learned he would not have enough room in his luggage to bring his wok. So Yao had to settle for the cooking utensils that he could afford in Norway.

"Like, what are we eating?" a monotone voice called out, belonging so obviously to Leon.

"Sit down, aru, we're having fried rice," Yao said, starting the fire on the stove. A few minutes later, while Yao was busy cooking, the doorbell rang. "I'll be right there, aru!" Yao yelled out. Apparently, however, the person at the door had not heard him, and the doorbell rang again, almost angrily.

"I'll get it," Kiku quietly said, before Yao could grow impatient. The Japanese boy fast-walked to the door, before stopping his tracks, right in front of the door. He took a deep breath and then meekly opened the door.

"Well hello there does Leon Kirkland live here by any chance?" an accented voice called out. Kiku lifted his head up higher to meet green eyes and eyebrows that he did not believe could exist. The boy in front of him was obviously British and was probably only a few years older than him.

'What was it that Yao told me? When I see European men with really thick eyebrows,' Kiku began internally pondering. Suddenly, an imaginary light bulb lit above his head, and Kiku quickly slammed the door in the stranger's face. Disobeying the house's rules of not running, Kiku ran to the kitchen, nearly tripping after he skidded to a stop.

"There's a European with really thick eyebrows at the door," Kiku stated calmly.

Yao, in contrary to Kiku's calmness, slammed his spatula onto the counter, turning the stove fire off. Ripping his apron off, Yao rushed over to the door, Kiku following behind him obediently. Seething with anger, Yao swung the front door open again, only to be met with a face he really didn't want to see.

"Oh, Yao, I'm not surprised to see you here. Now, if you don't mind, I would like to see my brother," the stranger said. Well, he wasn't really a stranger. He was a stranger to Kiku, that was for sure. But Yao, on the other hand, Yao knew exactly who the teenager was. He could never forget his favorite step-brother. Arthur Kirkland, the youngest of the Kirkland family, was standing on Yao's doorstep.

Arthur was wearing an obscenely tight pair of black pants, all ripped up at the sides. He wore a t-shirt printed with the name of some band that Yao didn't know about nor care about, a black leather jacket keeping him warm from the cold of a January in Norway. His dirty-blonde hair had streaks of bright green and black dyed in it, and overall, Yao thought that Arthur just got worse.

Arthur had been shy as a child when Yao knew him, he was so innocent, but as he reached his pre-teens, he started becoming rebellious and foul-mouthed. Yao knew it was only a matter of time for Arthur to change, he had just not anticipated that Arthur would become so defiant. As Arthur began to grow wildly, he and Yao began hating each other and stopped acknowledging each other as siblings.

"Why are you here, opium?" Yao sneered, glaring at his step-brother. Kiku noted that Yao's verbal tic, had changed, which he wasn't sure was intentional or not.

Legally, they were still step-brothers, but Yao's father had died, and when that occurred, Yao decided to break off all ties with his step-family, save for his step-mother, who was the reason why he had his job. Britannia Kirkland was one of the founders of the education company Yao worked for, and she often traveled the world to teach English, recruit teachers, and start schools. Arthur's mother had offered Yao and young relatives a home with her children in London, but Yao had declined. Yao convinced his step-mother to give the rights of guardian to his siblings and cousins from her to him, and had agreed to let his step-mother provide the money for them. Debt inherited from Yao's biological family had proven to be far too much, however. So despite the luxurious amount of money that his step-mother provided, Yao and his family ended up being lower-middle class. Yao did not tell Britannia of his struggles.

Britannia was the only Kirkland that Yao interacted with in a friendly manner.

"Like I said, I'm here to see Leon. I went all the way to Hong Kong to see him, but then mother called and told me that you guys had moved to Norway," Arthur answered, glaring back at the older man.

"Why should I let you see Leon, opium? You might spread your bad habits and taste in clothing to him," Yao retorted, crossing his arms.

Unbeknownst to the young man, the rest of the members of the household had grown curious. It was Mei, at first, who had gone there. She was sent over to see what was happening. Seeing her step-brother, she rushed back to the kitchen, only to spill the news to her cousins. Leon, who was half-asleep, did not hear their whispering and didn't even realize that the three had disappeared to watch Yao and Arthur from afar. Leon had even began to doze off, resting his head on the table.

"I'm just as much as his brother as you are!" Arthur shouted at the Chinese man. The bubble that held his temper had finally burst.

"Like hell you are, opium!" Yao shouted back, starting to grow angry as well. At the sound of the curse word, Kiku flinched. The Japanese boy knew well that it took a lot to get Yao to curse, even such a small word like that. On the other hand, Im Yong Soo and Hyung Soo leaned a little closer to see Yao and Arthur more clearly, "Ooh," coming from their mouths, knowing trouble was brewing.

"What's happening? I, like, was trying to sleep," a tired voice droned out.

Suddenly, everyone's attention had snapped to Leon. Leon was still bandaged around his head and chest, although they were new from yesterday. His hair was a mess, and he was rubbing his eyes. His red pajamas were wrinkled all over and in one of his hands he held a spoon. Arthur's eyes ignored all the other details, however, and were more fixated on the bandages wrapped around Leon's head.

"What the bloody hell happened to Leon?!" Arthur exclaimed. The teenager shoved past Yao, entering the house without permission. Arthur crouched down to Leon's height, looking the boy in the eyes, and held his shoulders. "What happened to you, Leon?" he asked again, but this time, softly and without a hint of profanity or anger.

"Arthur? Aren't you supposed to be in Denmark at that fancy high school?" Leon asked, not answering his half-brother's question.

The relationship Leon had with Arthur was weird. He didn't complain about Arthur like he did with Yao, but that didn't mean he liked Arthur entirely. Just last year, Leon had set fireworks off in Arthur's room, during the time that he visited his other family for a few days. Yao had protested in allowing Leon to travel all the way to London alone and protested in allowing Leon to be around the 'silly westerners', but the thought that Britannia would watch over his brother eased Yao's mind. Of course, Yao's mind was not relaxed once he received a call that Arthur's room was filled with the bursts of colorful fireworks Leon had somehow brought with him.

"Leon, answer my question, please," Arthur pleaded. Yao bit his lip, refraining himself from speaking. He was not pleased that Arthur had invited himself inside, but he understood that Arthur was sincerely concerned for Leon. He only hoped that Arthur would not take Leon's injuries the wrong way and take him away.

"He fell, da-ze!" Im Yong Soo suddenly started, "While saving another boy!"

Mei soon piped up, adding more details as to what happened, "You should have seen it, Leon was blushing like crazy."

Kiku made a mental note to himself to ask Mei for more details. Since he had to attend his English-learning class, he was, sadly, not there to witness Leon's supposed blush. 'I knew there was something different with Leon. He hasn't used his fireworks ever since he's been going to school,' Kiku contemplated.

* * *

 **Author's Note: Tack for reading! Quick question, for the future of this fic and others connected to it, who would you pair England with?**


	11. Chapter 10

**Author's Note: Hej! 'Kay, so I had, like, no inspiration at all this week and had no idea what to write for this chapter.**

 **Disclaimer: I own nothing. NOTHING!**

* * *

 _ **Characters:**_

 _ **Emil Steilsson ~ Iceland**_

 _ **Erik Steilsson ~ OC/Ancient Scandinavia**_

 _ **Yao Wang ~ China**_

 _ **Kiku Honda ~ Japan**_

 _ **Mei Wang ~ Taiwan**_

 _ **Arthur Kirkland ~ England**_

 ** _Xiang "Leon" Kirkland-Wang ~ Hong Kong_**

 ** _Im Yong Soo ~ South Korea_**

 ** _Hyung Soo ~ North Korea_**

 ** _Lu V. ~ OC_**

* * *

 _-Third Person-_

Emil waited with his father, outside of their house. It was Monday, and like any sane person, Emil absolutely loathed Monday. They had been waiting for a few minutes for their neighbors. The arrangements that had been made on Thursday the week prior were still intact, despite all the events that had occurred in only a few days.

Emil wore his dark blue sweater, clutching on to it. It was colder than usual this morning, causing Emil to wear the second sweater over his normal cream-colored vest. His hair was still very messy, especially in the bitter wind that swirled around. Both of the straps of Emil's backpack were on his shoulders, rather slinging one strap on and holding it. Today, he was holding something else in his hands. His only free hand held a book, which he kept fondly. It was a picture book, filled with fairytales, and all of the words were in Norwegian. The book was how he learned Norwegian, his first language being Icelandic. His father read it to Emil when he was younger and still had to learn the language.

Finally the family from the across the street emerged from their house. Yao held a large bag, filled with his teaching supplies and lessons. He seemed to be struggling with it, a little, and his hair was getting in his way because of the wind. All in all, the Chinese man did not look happy. Kiku followed closely behind, the quiet, Japanese boy heaving a large backpack. His expression was calm, but if one looked a little closely, Kiku was a little weary. Not far from Yao and Kiku was Mei, skipping happily.

However, Emil and Erik noticed a new face that neither had seen before. Before Emil saw any other features of the new face, he saw ridiculously large eyebrows. After trying to convince himself that the eyebrows weren't animals that jumped on the boy's face, Emil decided to take in the rest of the boy's appearance. There were streaks of black and neon green in blonde hair and a permanent scowl on the boy's face. Emil noticed piercings on his ears, which didn't deter him like it did with most people. The boy looked slightly older than Kiku and wore a stiff, formal suit.

Im Yong Soo and Hyung Soo were hanging off the older boy, which explained why he had a scowl on his face. Emil was certain that even his usually cheery father would be ticked off if the two Korean twins were climbing all over him and pretending he was a playground.

Then, Emil was distracted. If one had asked Emil if he had a crush on Leon, he would say no. Because they were young, and Emil did not know what love was, and it was just that he ended up in situations with Leon that he had never experienced before. Right at this moment though, maybe Emil would admit that he had a tiny, microscopic crush Leon.

Leon walked in the very back and actually had an emotion visible on his face. The eight year old wore a similar suit as the older boy who he was right behind. Leon's hair had been neatly combed and around the collar of the white button-up shirt was a perfectly-tied blue ribbon. It definitely wasn't something Emil thought Leon would wear, although he had only known him for a few days. Still, Emil guessed that the angry expression that Leon wore meant that Leon was not pleased with his outfit.

"Good morning, opium. I don't want to bother you more, Erik, but can you please do this, it's only for today, opium," Yao said as soon as he reached the father and son, "This is my step-brother, Arthur, opium. He goes to the World Academy in Denmark, you know, the high school with the foreign students program. Anyway, he wants to be a teacher, opium, and because he's a part of a career-prep program there, his assignment was to go to your elementary school and work as an assistant for one of the teachers."

Erik nodded in understanding, knowing fully well of the special school located in Denmark. The school was the first high school built by the company he, Yao, and Lu, worked for. He himself had gone to that high school, because it had a program that reached out to bright students across the world that offered them a chance at a private school. Erik had been a part of the career-prep program, the same one as Arthur. From what Erik knew, Yao had been offered a chance to go to the school but turned it down in order to stay with his siblings and cousins. Emil's teacher did not go to the World Academy, either, but she was well aware of the special high school that was invite-only, unless you had a sibling there.

"It's a pleasure to meet you, sir. I'm Arthur Kirkland, Yao's step-brother and Leon's half-brother, " the teenager said. Arthur held his hand out to Emil's father. Erik grabbed Arthur's hand and firmly shook it, smiling.

"Same to you, Arthur. I hate to inform you that your ride to the elementary school may be uncomfortable, my car is quite small," Erik replied, opening the car door to allow the children access inside. Im Yong Soo and Hyung Soo were the first to climb in, while Leon followed them into the back.

"That's no problem, I can just have Leon on top of my lap," Arthur said, looking into the car. He was about to take a seat inside, but was interrupted by several voices.

"You can't, da-ze! Leon has claimed Emil's chest!"

"Yong Soo! He means that Emil sits on Leon's lap."

"I do not mean to be rude, but I do not think you can carry two boys."

"Aww! I thought Emil was going to sit on Leon's lap again!"

Arthur was a little taken aback by all the comments that had come from the mouths of Im Yong Soo, Hyung Soo, Kiku, and Mei. He took only a few seconds to process what the four had said at the exact time. Arthur also chose to ignore the fact that Kiku may or may not have insulted him.

"Well, that won't be a problem. Um, Hyung Soo, you wouldn't mind sitting on top of me, would you?" Arthur said, bending down to the height of the eight-year old Korean.

"I'm Yong Soo!" the boy happily replied.

"Oh, right, so sorry,"

* * *

 **Author's Note: Sorry this chapter is short, I couldn't think of what to write for the chapter. Review, follow, favorite, do anything, they make me happy! Also, the votes on who Arthur will have a relationship is still up. The results so far will be posted below.**

 **AmericaxEngland - 2**

 **FrancexEngland - 1**

 **SeychellesxEngland - 1**

 **Review your preferred pairing with England. Different pairings with England are welcome as well, however some may not be available due to already set pairings.**


	12. Chapter 11

**Author's Note: Sorry I didn't upload last week, just personal things going on.**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Hetalia.**

* * *

 _ **Characters**_

 ** _Lu V. ~ OC_**

 ** _Vash Zwingili ~ Switzerland_**

 ** _Lily Zwingili ~ Liechtenstein_**

 ** _Romulus Vargas ~ The Roman Empire_**

 ** _Erik Steilsson ~ OC/Ancient Scandinavia_**

 ** _Mei Wang ~ Taiwan_**

 ** _Emil Steilsson ~ Iceland_**

 ** _Im Yong Soo ~ South Korea_**

 ** _Hyung Soo ~ North Korea_**

 ** _Xiang "Leon" Kirkland-Wang ~ Hong Kong_**

 ** _Arthur Kirkland ~ England_**

 ** _Alfred Jones ~ America_**

 ** _Francis Bonnefoi ~ France_**

 ** _Michelle Bonnefoi ~ Seychelles_**

* * *

 _Third Person_

"Thank you for coming here, Vash," the third-grade teacher said as she escorted the young blonde out of her classroom.

"No, thank you for having me Ms. V. Really, though, I have to decline the offer. If Lily cannot come with me to the school in Denmark, then I cannot go there," Vash repeated once more.

"I understand, Vash. I'll talk to Headmaster Romulus and the primary school teachers around Copenhagen at the next conference. If I can't convince them, then I'll teach Lily some Danish. So just keep the offer in mind, okei?" Ms. V. replied before waving goodbye at the teenager.

With a sigh, Lu walked back into the classroom, where her young student, Lily, was waiting. The teacher had been trying to convince the foreign exchange student to attend the World Academy high school in Copenhagen, Denmark. The Swiss boy was in Norway for the three years that the secondary school, also a part of the Hetalia International Education System, offered in their exchange program. The boy was already in his second year of the program, and his teachers there had attempted to convince him to enter the World Academy. After their efforts failed, however, they turned to Lu, his younger sister's teacher, for convincing him.

Lu had only two problems when it came to relocating the Zwingili siblings to Copenhagen. The first problem was living arrangements. The World Academy did not offer dormitories, and even if it did, then Lily could not have lived there. So Lu would have to find an apartment for them, or a family willing to have them in their home.

The second problem was finding a school for Lily. Because Lily did not know Danish, she would not be able to attend a normal primary school there. The primary schools in Copenhagen that were a part of the Hetalia International Education System were all special schools, however, and it was required that the student met a certain requirement. Ms. V. already knew that Lily was not part of the fine arts, which eliminated the possibility of eight out of the ten Hetalia primary schools in Copenhagen. The other two schools specialized in sports, and the teacher knew immediately that Vash would not allow his sister to go to those.

"Oh Lily, I don't know what to do with your brother," the teacher said as she collapsed at her desk.

The young girl walked up to her teacher's desk, a small smile on her face.

"Big brother is just stubborn sometimes. I'm sure you can convince him to go to the World Academy," Lily replied, taking a seat on the chair across from Ms. V.

The young girl looked across the desk, which was bare of papers, save for a wire basket of already-graded assignments and a manila folder labeled, 'Operation: HongIce' in English. As the teacher sulked with her head in her arms, Lily reached over for the folder, opening it up.

"Why is Emil being called Iceland in the papers?" Lily asked. The sudden, unexpected question caused Lu's head to snap up.

"You can read Finnish, Lily?" Ms. V. questioned, not answering Lily's question.

Lily nodded her head happily before answering, "Big brother says that it is good to know many languages. He has already taught me how to speak German and French, and you are teaching me Norwegian and English. Big brother promised me he would wear the pajamas I made him if I could successfully learn Finnish, but I can only read Finnish, not speak it."

Lu quickly got up, and walked to the other side of her desk. She picked up the young girl, hugging her and spinning her around. The pink dress she wore fluttered around as the young girl spun in her teacher's arms.

"That's it, Lily! Your talent in the liberal arts can get you into one of the Hetalia primary schools in Copenhagen! That way Vash will be able to go to the World Academy without worrying about what school you will go to!" Ms. V. exclaimed, placing Lily back on the ground.

"I don't think any of the schools have a liberal arts program, though," Lily pointed out.

"They may not have a liberal arts program, but the schools will practically be fighting for you when they learn about you!" Ms. V. said, already writing down notes, "And if you can't get into one of them, then I'll just teach you Danish, like I told your brother I would."

The teacher was already planning some lessons for Lily. The notes she was writing were beginning to become messy, but they were perfectly eligible for the woman.

"Ms. V., you don't have to do this for me," Lily interrupted, head turning down so she faced the ground.

Sighing, Lu knelt down to Lily's height so that they were face to face. "Lily, I am getting you and your brother to Copenhagen. You both have so much talent, you need to nurture them. I'll do anything, I'll even help you with your Finnish," the teacher said softly.

Lily's head slowly came back up to stare back at her teacher, and Lu noticed that a certain gleam appeared in the young girl's eyes. It was the same gleam that was in her eyes when she said she wanted Leon to become Emil's friend.

"In that case, can you teach me Belarusian as well?" the young girl asked.

The teacher laughed as she stood up and spoke, "I'll teach you whatever language you want, Lily, as long as its within my power."

* * *

Erik Steilsson walked briskly to Ms. V.'s third grade classroom, a group of boys following close behind him. He had dropped Mei off at his classroom, trusting the girl to behave in his classroom and be safe. Emil was walking ahead of him, acting as if it was just a normal day for him.

Im Yong Soo and Hyung Soo were next to his side, asking random questions and generally being loud. Well, at least, Im Yong Soo was being loud. Hyung Soo was quieter than his twin, but it did not change the fact that he was still constantly asking questions.

Behind the fifth-grade teacher was Leon. The boy was silent as he usually was, but his emotionless eyes still shined with a hint of irritation as he tugged at the stiff suit he was forced into. Arthur Kirkland, the newest edition to the group he had to transport, was right beside his half-brother. The English teenager was asking his brother various questions, although they weren't random like the Korean twins'. They ranged from how he was doing at school to the video games that he had sent them.

Emil opened the door to the classroom and walked inside, only to stop in his tracks. Im Yong Soo and Hyung Soo gathered behind Emil, looking past him and into the classroom. Because his son, Im Yong Soo, and Hyung Soo were blocking the doorway, Erik poked his head through the door, hovering above his son. Scattered throughout the floor were many, colorful index cards, along with Lily Zwingili and Ms. V.

"Moikka Emil, Mr. Steilsson, Im Yong Soo, Hyung Soo!" Lily chirped happily, greeting the people she saw in Finnish. Since Leon and Arthur were still behind Erik, she had not seen them. She waved at them, a vibrant green index card in her hand.

"Hei everyone! Don't mind the mess, I'm just teaching Lily how to pronounce Finnish greetings!" Ms. V. exclaimed, motioning for her students and her coworker to come inside.

Emil immediately went towards his desk, taking out all of his classwork. The twins went to the piano, Im Yong Soo dragging Hyung Soo there and pleading his brother to teach him how to play the instrument. Erik walked in and towards his son's teacher as she stood back up, while Lily continued to study the cards. Leon, for the first time, strayed away from his step-brother, choosing to instead go towards Emil.

"Lu, I have a student from the World Academy. He's in the career-prep program," Erik informed the teacher.

With that, Arthur came up from behind the Icelander, ready to introduce himself. He stopped in his tracks, however, once he saw his step-brother's teacher.

"Oh! Hello Arthur, I was not aware that you were in high school. Did you skip a grade?" Lu asked, patting the teenager on the head.

"You know him?" Erik asked, slightly confused.

"Of course! He was our neighbor for two years and used to have play dates with my nephew, Alfred, whenever Alfred visited us. When Alfred wasn't with us, I would watch over Arthur and our other neighbors' children, Francis and Michelle, when they were in the park," Ms. V. replied, ruffling Arthur's hair.

Arthur, surprisingly, did not scowl at the action. "Yes, well, Ms. Lu, I must inform you that I am here as an assignment," Arthur said, straightening his posture.

"Mr. Kirkland is here to be an assistant for a teacher," Emil's father cut in, giving his coworker the paper evaluation that Yao had given him. The paper was part of Arthur's assignment, the teacher he was assisting had to evaluate his performance on the provided paper. The paper also held instructions that the teacher was to place the paper, and any notes about the student, in a sealed envelope.

"Well then, I'll put you to work, Arthur," Ms. V. told Arthur, before turning to Erik, "Thank you for bringing Arthur and informing me of the situation, Erik."

With everything taken care of and set into place, Erik left the classroom, saying his goodbyes to his son and neighbors.

* * *

Meanwhile, Emil was trying to gather all of his courage. He clutched the book in his hands, and glancing continuously at his neighbor. Leon was in his seat next to Emil, writing in Cantonese in his journal.

After contemplating for a long while, Emil finally tapped Leon on the shoulder. The eight-year old's attention changed from his journal to the half-Icelander sitting next to him. Instead of looking into those beautiful violet eyes, Leon found himself staring at a note.

'I wanted to help you learn Norwegian, so I brought you a book,' was what the note read in English.

After reading the note, which was written in Emil's shaky handwriting, Leon looked back up. Emil was offering him a hard-covered book. It was flat and wide, with a realistic and detailed illustration on the front and back. When Leon opened it up, he found that it was filled with fairy tales, most of which he already knew. The only problem was that they were all in Norwegian.

He was about to tell Emil that there was no way he could learn Norwegian if there were no translations, but Emil had already written another note and placed it in front of him.

'I'll write down the translations for you,' was all it simply stated.

True to his words, Emil was already writing down translations. The boy was taking out his stationary, which was decorated with puffins. In his hands, he held his special notepad, a little puffin decoration at the bottom of the papers, and was writing in shaky, yet neat, print. Leon changed his attention from Emil's writing to the strange, foreign words of the picture book. From the illustrations, Leon was guessing that he was currently reading 'The Little Mermaid'.

* * *

"Alright class! Time to begin! I have a super special announcement to make!" Ms. V. announced, gently pushing Arthur towards the front of the room, "This week, we'll be having a special guest. Please welcome Arthur, he's planning to become a teacher and will be assisting me. You can ask him questions after he introduces himself."

The teenager bowed politely, before speaking, "It's a pleasure to meet you all. My name is Arthur Kirkland."

Almost immediately, ten hands shot up, all having questions for the English boy. Ms. V. pointed to one of the children sitting in the North America table whose hand had been raised first. "Why do you have earrings?" the child asked in English, stumbling a little on the words.

Before Arthur could answer, Lu spoke. "Barnet mitt, please don't ask sensitive questions," Ms. V. lightly chided. The eight-year old grew a little red, and mumbled a, 'sorry' to Arthur.

"No, no, it's quite okay Ms. Lu, I don't mind the question at all," Arthur said, before turning to the child, "I have earrings as a tribute to my friends when I was younger. Of course, they're still my friends now. I greet them every morning and they're such wonderful company."

Emil heard Leon mumble, quietly, almost indecipherable, "He's talking about his hallucinations again."

* * *

 **Translations:**

 **Moikka - Hello**

 **Barnett mitt - My child (I didn't want to make another OC)**

 **Author's Note: Tack så mycket för läsning! (Thank you very much for reading!) And once again, I don't speak Norwegian, Swedish is the closest thing thing I've got** **, so I'm sorry about anything wrong. Here is the poll so far:**

 **AmericaxEngland - 7**

 **FrancexEngland - 3**

 **SeychellesxEngland - 1**

 **Review who you would pair England with!**


	13. Chapter 12

**Author's Note: Hej! I was in Disneyland and it was beautiful. It has also inspired me to write another one-shot, so check it out once I publish it!**

 **Disclaimer: I own nothing!**

* * *

 _ **Characters:**_

 _ **Arthur Kirkland ~ England**_

 _ **Lu V. ~ OC**_

 _ **Britannia Kirkland ~ Ancient Britain**_

 _ **Xiang "Leon" Kirkland-Wang ~ Hong Kong**_

 _ **Emil Steilsson ~ Iceland**_

 _ **Mei Wang ~ Taiwan**_

 _ **Lukas Bondevik-Steilsson/Lukas Thomassen ~ Norway**_

 _ **Allistor Kirkland ~ Scotland**_

* * *

 _Third Person_

Arthur sat at the table by Ms. V.'s desk. The teacher had nothing for him to do and the third-graders were working on a math assignment he had passed out. There was nothing for him to grade, and Ms. V. had instructed Arthur that she would be going around and helping the children with their math. While Arthur had protested at first, saying that the reason for him being at the school was to assist her, the woman told him to become accustomed to how things in her classroom work, first.

"My classroom, like any classroom of a teacher from the Hetalia International Education System, is extremely different, Arthur. A textbook cannot prepare you for the eccentric-ness and strange habits of us. The reason why your mother, Britannia, is in charge of finding teachers and students that are to join the company is because she has an eye for the unusual, just like you," was what Lu had told him, in a hushed voice. She later reassured him that he would get his chance to help out. For now, it would just be best if he observed how the way the environment functioned.

So Arthur sat, sat and observed the classroom, the behavior of the students, the way Ms. V. acted and reacted. Occasionally, the teenager would find himself watching his step-brother, Leon, just to make sure he was alright. The half-Chinese, half-British student seemed to be doing perfectly fine, and when he needed help, he would not raise his hand and ask the teacher for help, but would tap on the desk of the strange looking boy sitting next to him and ask him in English if he could help. The boy, Arthur noticed, never talked, but instead pointed at Leon's paper and back to his, every now and then scribbling some notes down and handing them to Leon.

'I know that boy was in the car with us. Is he Leon's friend? I can't seem to recall his name,' Arthur internally thought to himself.

Suddenly, Arthur's thoughts and the thinking processes of many eight-year old students were disrupted when a loud bell chorused through the room.

"Oh! Looks like I went a little over our set time! Well, that's the recess bell, so you kids are permitted to go outside, but we'll be right back at this assignment once you get back, okei?" Ms. V. announced. The students practically crawled out of their seats, tripping as they all lined up at the door to be lead to the glorious half-an-hour known as recess. Arthur could hear Ms. V. gently chiding the students, telling them that they would still get plenty of recess if they lined up in a more orderly fashion. Soon, Arthur found himself alone in the room, Ms. V. having to walk the students to the playgrounds.

At least, Arthur thought he was alone. He hadn't realized that his step-brother and Emil were still in the room.

* * *

"Leon! What are you still doing here?" Arthur asked.

Arthur had spun around in fright when a little finger tapped him on his shoulder. The teenager was just about ready to lash out, out of self-defense, of course. He immediately stopped in his tracks once he realized it was his half-brother, staring at him with his blank eyes. The half-Chinese eight year old was tugging at the collar of the suit that Arthur had him wear. If Arthur looked really carefully, he could see the hint of annoyance that Leon barely displayed.

"I, like, am hanging out with Emil," Leon said, before tugging Arthur over to where he and Emil sat. "Emil's, like, super shy and uncomfortable because he doesn't know you," Leon continued, although this time it was in a hushed voice so that his half-Icelandic sort of friend would not hear.

"That's funny, you've only been here for around a week Leon. Is this the boy Mei was telling me about? The one who you're interested in for no reason?" Arthur whispered back at Leon. The teenager just couldn't help the small smirk that formed on his face after a visible blush burst onto Leon's face. As the duo reached Emil, who was working on the math assignment, Arthur noted that Leon's blush grew a little more.

"Hello, there. It's Emil, right? I'm Arthur, Leon's half-brother," Arthur introduced himself, bowing slightly.

When Arthur lifted his head back up, he saw violet eyes, slightly haunted but altogether mysterious, that bore a striking resemblance to the indigo eyes of someone he knew. The third grader nodded his head, acknowledging the teenager, before turning his head back down, tousled bangs of his white hair hiding his eyes from view, to continue his assignment. Arthur tried his best to try and remember who the indigo eyes belonged to, but the only people he could think of who had violet eyes was Ms. V.'s family and the Russian siblings in his school. Arthur's mind deterred form the subject at the thought of Ms. V.'s family and the Russian siblings, however. The Russian siblings were a taboo subject within the presence of Ms. V., and Arthur felt as if he was betraying her by thinking of such a matter.

The teenager was snapped out of his thoughts when he was pulled down onto a chair by Leon and Emil.

"Like, help us with this math," Leon demanded, tapping his pencil on the desk.

"Ms. V. has instructed me to only observe for today, Leon," Arthur said, reminding Leon of what his teacher had announced to the class.

"You, like, want to be a teacher, right? The teachers in the Hetalia program all have their own style. At least that's, like, what Yao says. Show us how you would teach," Leon retorted, stopping the 'tap, tap, tap' of his pencil so he could look at his half-brother seriously.

Arthur, speechless, stared at Leon for two minutes. In his head, Arthur was weighing the pros and cons of doing what his young half-brother was telling him to do. 'Leon is right. But like Ms. V. said, it's good to observe different teaching methods. Oh, if only Mint Bunny was here,' Arthur internally said. Unbeknownst to Arthur, Emil was still there, his silence masking his presence. The eight year old began scribbling on a piece of scrap paper, before handing it to Leon.

Leon looked at the note, which was the third note he had ever gotten from Emil. Yes, he was counting. Three is a big accomplishment within a couple days, especially since what happened during those few days. The writing was in Norwegian, although there was an English translation underneath.

"Emil says that you should help us, it's good to put your talents to use," Leon said, reading the English translation.

Arthur turned to Emil, a light bulb above his head suddenly clicking.

 _-Flashback-_

 _"Class! We have a new student today! He's come here to Copenhagen to live with his uncle. Please welcome Lukas Thomassen!" Arthur's cheerful teacher announced, motioning to the boy standing in front of the class. he looked slightly uncomfortable and wary, but other than that, was mostly emotionless. He reminded Arthur of his half-brother, seeing how Leon always seemed to show an emotionless face these days. Arthur sighed, remembering the days in which Leon was such a well-behaved kid. Really, Arthur blamed the shift in Leon's personality on his older brother, Allistor. Although, Arthur will admit he did have a few things that had to do with Leon's changing behavior._

 _Arthur was snapped out of his thoughts when he heard shuffling next to him. Soon, he found that the new student, Lukas, was sitting next to him. The teenager, one year older than him like all of his classmates, stared at him blankly. Arthur was growing used to blank stares, but there was something about Sigurd's that sent a shiver down his spine. Arthur suspected it was Sigurd's eyes._

 _They were indigo, a slightly strange color for eyes, in Arthur's opinion. Or maybe they wouldn't have been so unusual if they didn't have violet streaking through it. Arthur contemplated, thinking that maybe in the right light, Sigurd's eyes would look purple. The eyes were emotionless, no show of worry or fear or happiness. If Arthur didn't know Leon, he probably would have thought that Sigurd was a robot._

 _-Flashback Ends-_

"Do you have a brother?" Arthur suddenly blurted out.

Leon's eyes widened. His prior experience with Emil in the classroom's closet gave him the knowledge that the topic of siblings, or at least a brother, was taboo for Emil. However, despite knowing Emil's reaction to the mention of a brother, Leon was not sure what to do. Leon glanced nervously at Emil, to see his classmate shaking uncontrollably.

Both Emil and Arthur's eyes widened in surprise when Leon wrapped his arms around Emil.

* * *

Emil walked to his room, and for the first time in the past couple of days, he was not in despair as he retreated to his corner of the house. School had ended a long time ago and he had gone home a long time ago. After Leon had hugged him, Emil was too shocked to even cry or sulk about the thought of his brother. The rest of class had gone by with Arthur apologizing profusely and Emil blushing every time he looked at Leon. He dropped his backpack in front of the bedroom door after softly shutting it closed. Once Emil changed into his pajamas, he made his way to the large bed, falling face first into the soft comforters and blankets. The past few days had been so emotionally draining, Emil could not believe that so much had happened within a short span of time.

Sighing, Emil rolled over onto his back. For a long time, he stared up at the ceiling, trying to recall the events of the last few days. So much had happened. First, Leon and his family moved in across the street, then he got locked in a closet with Leon, Leon came to his house and got injured, Leon's step-brother became Ms. V.'s assistant for an assignment, and finally, Leon hugged him. 'Wait, why does everything that happened have to do with Leon?' Emil internally pondered, 'Why do I even get so flustered about him? Is it because he's had so much physical contact with me? That must be it, right?'

Emil was snapped out of his thoughts, however, when his father walked into the room.

"Hei, Emil. I thought I'd tell you a bedtime story, since I haven't told you one in a while," Erik said as he entered his son's room, "It's not actually a bedtime story, though. It's actually a story about your mother." Erik sat on the edge of his son's bed as the eight-year old crawled underneath the covers of his bed. When Emil situated himself in his bed, Mr. Puffin held close to his chest, Erik got off the bed and brought a stool over, setting it next to the bed before he sat on it.

"This story comes from before I met your mother, actually. I only know about it because one of her friend's told it to me," Erik began, as he begun to spin the tale. Usually, when he told Emil bedtime stories, they were about superheroes or fantastic adventures or magic, all of which had Emil as the protagonist, but the man thought it would be more appropriate to tell Emil something about the mother he never knew. Erik had promised his wife's friend, at the funeral, that he would tell his youngest son the stories of his mother once he was old enough, but when Lukas ran away he had practically forgotten about the promise. Erik was not sure if Emil was ready to hear about his mother, not after everything that had happened in the past few days, but a part of him felt that Emil needed the life lessons and advice of his mother now, more than ever.

* * *

 **Author's Note: Tack för läsning! (Thank you for reading!) Reviews are very much appreciated!**

 **AmericaxEngland - 13**

 **FrancexEngland - 5**

 **SeychellesxEngland - 1**


	14. Chapter 13

**Author's Note: Hallå! I have an actual excuse this time! My computer hasn't been working and Eurovision was this week.**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Hetalia or Eurovision.**

* * *

 _ **Characters:**_

 _ **Lu**_ _ **Väinämöinen ~ OC**_

 _ **Vash Zwingili ~ Switzerland**_

 _ **Lily Zwingili ~ Liechtenstein**_

 ** _Erik Steilsson ~ Ancient Scandinavia_**

 ** _Emil Steilsson ~ Iceland_**

 ** _Tino Väinämöinen ~ Finland_**

 ** _Yao Wang ~ China_**

 ** _Im Yong Soo ~ South Korea_**

 ** _Hyung Soo ~ North Korea_**

 ** _Kiku Honda ~ Japan_**

 ** _Mei Wang ~ Taiwan_**

 ** _Xiang "Leon" Kirkland-Wang_**

* * *

 _-Third Person-_

Lu had no idea how she got herself dragged into this situation. Okay, she knew exactly how she ended up in this situation. She may or may not have suggested to her husband and son that she missed them and wished she could be with them to watch Eurovision. She just didn't know the consequences of her not-so-subtle hinting.

"Ms. V.! Can you help me with setting up the screen?" Vash called out, motioning his younger sister's teacher over. The teacher nodded and rushed over to help the secondary school student. The short woman reached over and helped the Swiss teenager pull up the white sheet. Once she was able to put it up, she went over with Vash to a group of children and teenagers.

They were outside, in Erik and Emil's backyard. Her coworker had volunteered to use his home as a gathering place. The Icelander knew that Lu had large plans for the event of the Eurovision song contest, however, her small apartment which she rented while staying in Norway was not suitable for the plans. The plan was actually improvised, and was made during the middle of her class.

 _-Flashback-_

 _"As Ms. V. told you, the Kalmar Union was between Norway, Denmark and Sweden," Arthur began speaking as he stood in front of the class. It was Friday and Ms. V. had given him a chance to teach the class, but she gave him the topic at the end of the school day on Monday. The teacher had revealed that the reason for Arthur not doing anything Monday was so that he observe how each child learned and could prepare a lesson plan that could reach every child. Over the past days Arthur took his time to learn about the students and occasionally help them with their assignments, to learn how to teach them best._

 _Arthur turned around and took out a picture showcasing five boys, before continuing, "To help you better understand the union, let's say that each country is a person. It took quite some time, but I was able to find a drawing of five boys representing the countries of Denmark, Norway, Iceland, Sweden, and-"_

 _"Moi, äiti!" a bubbly voice interrupted. The heads of the little third graders turned to the door of the classroom, were a short teenager stood. He had blond hair, combed neatly, and vibrant, kind eyes that were the same color as Emil's, only they were a shade lighter. He wore a blue sweater and khaki pants with a cross necklace._

 _"Tino, mun poika! Mitä? Kuinkä?" Ms. V. said, standing up from her desk._

 _"Isi couldn't come, but he let me!" the boy, Ms. V.'s son, replied, not answering his mother's question, "Oh, hello, Arthur! Is that a drawing of human representations of the Nordic countries during the Kalmar Union?"_

 _Yes, it was quite a surprise for Lu Väinämöinen when her only son, Tino Väinämöinen appeared._

 _-End of Flashback-_

"Are you okay, äiti?" a voice called out, the voice belonging to Tino.

"Hm? Oh, I'm okei poika," Lu responded, patting him on the shoulder.

The young woman sat down next to her son, combing his hair with her fingers. They were about to watch the grand final of Eurovision, and everyone was excited. Okay, almost everyone.

Lily and Vash were not as interested, because Liechtenstein did not compete in Eurovision and Switzerland did not make it to the grand finals. Arthur was excited, the United Kingdom was guaranteed to compete in the grand finals, being part of the Big 5. Yao could care less, although he did show some interest when he heard Russia would be competing. Surprisingly, Hyung Soo became instantly absorbed when he learned that Eurovision was a song contest. Im Yong Soo showed a lot of interest, but only as Erik told him about some of the songs. Kiku was taking notes, which kind of confused Lu, but she understood well that Kiku wanted to learn as much as possible.

Erik and Emil may have been the most excited out of everyone, besides herself and Tino. Seriously, though, they were waving Iceland's flags and Erik had also brought out his Eurovision merchandise. While Erik, Lu, Emil, and Tino were all disappointed that their countries were not competing in the grand final, but that didn't put out their excitement and enthusiasm. Because they were hardcore Eurovision fans. Tino was actually waving Sweden's flag, a tribute to his best friend who was Swedish. Meanwhile, Emil was trying to convince Leon to show enthusiasm for the contest. The usually anti-social child was currently inside, trying to make his acquaintance watch the show.

* * *

'You will watch it and you will enjoy it,' was what the note displayed. Leon was not sure how to react. Yes, he would admit he had a small crush on Emil, but Leon was going through the rebellious stage early, and did not like following orders. Only a few weeks ago, when they were still in Hong Kong, Leon would have been much more sociable, more well-mannered and trying to make a good impression on everyone. Moving to Europe changed everything.

"I, like, have no interest in it," Leon replied, smirking a little as he watched his acquaintance fume in anger. The smirk fell off his face when Emil seized his wrist, and dragged him outside, where everyone else was. Emil sat down onto a bench, pulling Leon down with him. Once they were both sitting down, Emil put both of his legs on top of Leon to stop him from getting up and walking back inside. He took out his notepad, and wrote furiously in it.

'You will watch Eurovision or I will tell Ms. V. about the firecrackers in your backpack,' it read, underlined various times.

"Like, how do you even know I have firecrackers there?" Leon whispered to Emil, hoping that his teacher did not have psychic powers or super eyesight that could read Emil's notepad from where she was sitting, "I'll watch it, just don't tell Ms. V., okay?"

'You will also show interest in it,' Emil added to the notepad.

"Fine! Yes, I will watch it and show interest in it!" Leon replied, his hands shooting up in exasperation.

* * *

"The only part I liked was the interval act," Leon said, turning to Emil who looked very sleepy. It was now well past their bedtime and the contest had just ended, with Ukraine winning.

Emil opened his eyes, stared at Leon for a few seconds, before closing his eyes again, this time going to sleep. His legs were still on top of Leon, keeping the eight year old from moving.

"Hey! Don't, like, go to sleep with your legs still on top of me!" Leon shouted, not noticing the small smile on Emil's face.

* * *

 **Translations:**

 **Moi, äiti! - Hello, mom!**

 **Tino, mun poika! Mita? Kunika? - Tino, my son. What? How?**

 **äiti - mom**

 **poika - son**

 **Author's Note: I didn't like the songs competing in Eurovision as much (the songs were still great!), but that interval act was amazing, I practically died when Alexander Rybak appeared. Review what your favorite Eurovision song was this year!**

 **Update - Thank you to the person who pointed out an incorrect translation! Sorry about that, I don't speak Finnish at all.**


	15. Chapter 14

**Author's Note: I joined a roleplay group! Hooray! I know, I should have been focusing on fanfiction, but I couldn't help it.**

 **I visited America's glasses, you guys! We kept on getting lost though.**

 **Okej, yes, I know, I am a terrible person. But I've been having writer's block with this story, it's hard to come up with ideas for it when I have too many ideas for other stories.**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Hetalia**

* * *

 _ **Characters:**_

 _ **Emil Steilsson ~ Iceland**_

 _ **Xiang "Leon" Kirkland-Wang**_

 _ **Lu Väinamöinen ~ OC**_

 _ **Im Yong Soo ~ South Korea**_

 _ **Hyung Soo ~ North Korea**_

 _ **Yao Wang ~ China**_

 _ **Mei Wang ~ Taiwan**_

 _ **Lily Zwingili ~ Liechtenstein**_

 _ **Elizabeta**_ ** _Héderváry ~ Hungary_**

 ** _Erik Steilsson ~ Ancient Scandinavia/OC_**

* * *

 _-Third Person-_

 _-One Month Later-_

"Why is is that you two never go outside to play?" Lu asked, looking at her two students still inside of her classroom, "You've been here for a month Leon, and the rest of your family is already used to the cold, even Yao."

It was true, though. Despite already getting used to the cold, Leon did not play outside. The teacher suspected that it was just because he wanted to spend some time with Emil more. She had noticed that Leon seemed to have a crush on Emil, which she decided would just help her with her quest to try and help Emil recover from the loss of his brother. Emil and Leon had gotten closer over the last month. With Leon going to his house every Saturday, going to school together, and staying in the classroom every day during recess, they had bonded greatly. They were at the point in which they could call each other friends. Currently, Emil was helping Leon learn Norwegian. He could only help him learn how to read and write Norwegian, however.

Emil took his whiteboard, which his father had gave him so that he wouldn't waste paper, and wrote a message in Norwegian. Once he finished writing it neatly, he showed it to Leon.

"I, like, don't know that word yet," Leon said to Emil, pointing his index finger at a word on the board.

Emil sighed, and wrote a translation underneath it, along with another message, this time in English, which read, 'You're supposed to look at the whole sentence and try to figure it out.'

Leon huffed, but read out the Norwegian sentence, though he said it in English because he had troubles with pronouncing some of the words, "Leon will cause trouble if he goes outside." After reading it aloud, he turned to Emil, and whispered quietly, "I, like, won't cause trouble. I didn't even bring my fire crackers today."

The violet-eyed boy did not seem to believe him, however, and stared blankly at Leon. Emil had managed to pick that trait up from Leon, an emotionless face that is. Or maybe it was from his brother, but Lu didn't really know if it was a family thing or he just did it to annoy Leon, which it effectively did.

Lu looked over to the two boys, and smiled to herself. The plan she created wasn't even necessary. Their friendship had formed without much intervention from herself. Although, when she thought about it, Leon's sister Mei and Lily seemed to always be watching the two and (not so) subtly causing situations between Leon and Emil. Thankfully, Lily had not told Elizabeta Héderváry, if she had, Lu had no doubt that the girl would have followed the two everywhere and tried to get them to kiss, even if they were eight years old. The teacher had no idea why the Hungarian had turned out that way. Maybe it was because she had thought she was a boy when she was younger.

"Well, just behave while I go out, okay?" Lu said, before walking out of her classroom.

* * *

 **Author's Note: I had End of Course exams this week. They were evil. Tack så mycket! Reviews are much appreciated!**


	16. Chapter 15

**Author's Note: Do you know what I had to do? Final exams. And then the week after my mom took me on an impromptu vacation without internet.**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Hetalia**

* * *

 _ **Characters:**_

 ** _Yao Wang ~ China_**

 ** _Im Yong Soo ~ South Korea_**

 ** _Hyung Soo ~ North Korea_**

 ** _Kiku Honda ~ Japan_**

 ** _Erik Steilsson ~ OC/Ancient Scandinavia_**

 ** _Lu Väinamöinen ~ OC_**

 ** _Mei Wang ~ Taiwan_**

 ** _Lily Zwingili ~ Liechtenstein_**

 ** _Vash Zwingili ~ Switzerland_**

 ** _Xiang "Leon" Kirkland-Wang ~ Hong Kong_**

 ** _Emil Steilsson ~ Iceland_**

 ** _Lukas Bondevik-Steilsson ~ Norway_**

* * *

 _-Time skip to summer-_

 _-Third Person-_

"Slow down, aru!" Yao yelled out as he was dragged around. Im Yong Soo and Hyung Soo was dragging Yao through an empty line to a roller coaster. Meanwhile, Kiku was walking, only a few paces behind.

Emil's birthday was only a couple days ago, and to celebrate the boy's birthday, Yao, Erik, and Lu arranged a trip to Denmark's Tivoli Gardens, which was an amusement park. School had ended a few days ago, which didn't come as a surprise to the Asian family; they had moved in around the end of the school year, after all.

Lu had only tagged along as an extra guardian, since Yao did have a big family. She was watching Mei, Lily, and Vash. She had brought Lily and Vash along because she was actually accompanying them to their new home and family, who agreed to take in the siblings, that were in Copenhagen. Since Vash was going to the World Academy in Denmark and the siblings were to move into their new home as soon as possible, the adults saw no harm in bringing them to the amusement park as well. Lu and her group were currently in line for the carousel, at Lily's request. Mei and Vash didn't mind going on the ride, since Vash was willing to do what Lily wanted and Mei had quickly become friends with the younger girl.

While everyone else was going on rides, however, Emil had asked his dad if he could have ice cream. Leon had looked at Emil weirdly, asking him why he wanted ice cream when it was so cold outside.

Emil was wearing khaki shorts and a plain t-shirt, sunscreen slathered over any expanse of skin that was visible. Erik had even placed a hat over his son's head, as well, since Emil was prone to sunburns with his really light skin. Leon, on the other hand, was bundled in a jacket and scarf over a long sleeved shirt and long pants. No one in Leon's family was used to the cold of northern Europe, seeing how before they moved to Norway, they had lived in southern China. So while most people were wearing lighter clothes, Leon and his family wore heavier clothing, which made them look a little out of place, something Leon did not notice.

"Here you go, Emil, Leon" Erik said, handing the two boys their frozen treat as he sat down next to them on the bench.

As the two children ate, Erik absently watched the crowds of people that walked past them. Past them walked a happy couple, holding hands and smiling. There was a group of teenagers talking loudly and shouting out random things as they made a beeline for one of the rides. Then there was a small family, the two small children being carried on the shoulders of their parents. From the corner of his eyes, Erik could of sworn he saw the familiar flash of blonde hair.

Erik sat there, contemplating a bit. A lot of people had blonde hair, it probably wasn't who he thought it was. Still, Erik couldn't help but think that blonde hair he saw belonged to Lukas. Lukas' hair was just like his mother's, and Erik would rather die than forget any feature of his deceased wife.

"Emil, Leon, stay here, I-I got to check something!" Erik said, getting up from his seat on the bench.

He shouldn't be leaving two eight year old boys alone, but Erik had a prickling feeling that he had to see whether or not that hair belonged to Lukas.

* * *

 **Author's Note: Yeah, this is short and you all probably hate me right now. Review, favorite or follow, thanks for reading!**


End file.
